Troubles Never Cease
by XenotheWise135
Summary: During the peace after the defeat of Oracion Seis, a potential threat makes itself known. What is the dark guild "Konoha", and are its mages truly evil? A repost/continuation of Sir Godot's "Dark Guild Konoha", adopted by me. The Edolas Arc is underway!
1. The Man Called Maelstrom

It was a beautiful day in the city of Magnolia. The sun was shining and a slight breeze moved the few visible clouds across the sky. In other words, it was excellent weather for another party at "Fairy Tail", one of the biggest and without a doubt one of the strongest magic guilds of the country. And while celebrating parties was no rare occurrence for the fun loving guild members, this party was different. It was a party for the return of the chosen mages that had been selected to defeat the Dark Guild of Oración Seis, a guild of outlawed mages. Even though they had only possessed six members, their power had equalled that of an army. But even though these six members possessed incredible strength, they ultimately fell before the combined powers of Fairy Tail, Lamia Scale, Blue Pegasus and Cait Shelter. But after the battle it had been revealed that the guild called Cait Shelter was nothing but the remains of a long lost civilization the strongest mage had kept alive for the sake of a single girl called Wendy. When they had vanished, the mages of Fairy Tail had offered the girl a place on their guild, an offer she happily accepted. But every party must come to an end sometime. And little did the members of Fairy Tail now that with the return of their strongest mage the news of an even greater threat would be revealed.

This is where our story starts…

**DARK GUILD KONOHA ARC, START**

**XxChapter 1: The man called "Maelstrom"xX**

Lucy, a blond haired young woman and the resident Celestial Spirit mage of Fairy Tail had just entered the guild building when she saw Wendy sitting at one of the tables reading a book. She decided to talk with the young girl.

"How is it, Wendy? Are you getting used to the guild?"

The young Sky Dragon Slayer looked up from her book and smiled at her friend. "Yes, it's nice here."

"I'm glad there's a girl's dorm." This came from Charle, a white and talking female cat wearing a dress. She was Wendy's oldest friend and trusted companion, just like Happy was for Natsu, the Fire Dragon Slayer.

"Speaking of which, why doesn't Lucy-san stay at the dorm?" Wendy asked curiously.

"I only heard of its existence recently." Lucy admitted with a defeated voice. "Plus the rent is so expensive; I wouldn't be able to afford it at the moment…" Lucy was silently shedding tears over this. Sometimes life really wasn't fair.

But just when the two of them wanted to continue their talk, they were interrupted by a shout of "Oh No!" and the sound of large bells ringing could be heard.

Lucy and Wendy looked around in confusion. They had no idea what this was all about until Natsu appeared from a corner of the guild along with some other mages. Apparently not everyone was completely clueless about the bells.

"When the bell is ringing this means-!" Natsu exclaimed excitedly. Even the normally stoic Gray was visibly excited, muttering a happy "Don't tell me" to himself. The people on the main street outside heard the bells as well, and they reacted immediately by retreating into their homes.

"Gildarts is back!" Natsu shouted, a wide grin spreading across his face. "He's back!" Happy added… well, happily.

"Gildarts?" Wendy asked, turning towards Lucy in the hope of answers.

The blond girl looked at Wendy with a mix of excitement and uncertainty. "I've never seen him before either… But they say he's the strongest mage in Fairy Tail!"

"Wow…" The young Dragon Slayer spoke. She was curious to see just what kind of person this Gildarts was. It was only now that the two of them noticed that everyone else in the guild had started celebrating like crazy.

"What's this about…? It's like it's a festival or something." Lucy muttered more to herself than anyone else. But Mirajane, a former S-Rank mage of the guild overheard her and answered her question.

"It can't be helped that they're excited Lucy. After all, it's been three years since Gildarts left."

"THREE YEARS?! What's he been doing all that time?" Lucy shouted, unable to contain her surprise.

Mirajane only chuckled a little. "Work, of course! You know that there are SS-rank missions, which are even above the S-rank mission you went with Natsu, Grey and Erza a while back. And above that there are the so-called "10 Years Missions" which are SS-rank missions that haven't been completed for over ten years."

At this Lucy's eyes were already as wide as saucers, and the big end had yet to come.

"What Gildarts does is even above those. Gildarts is coming back from a '100 Years Mission'."

"A '100 Years Mission'…? Do you mean that this mission has been going on for the last one hundred years?!"

A rumble interrupted the group, when suddenly walls started to rise from the ground of the city along the main street. The people had already evacuated, so there was now one very wide road with high walls at the side connecting the city entrance with Fairy Tail.

"N-no way! What the hell is this?" Whenever Lucy thought Fairy Tail couldn't get any crazier, something like this happened.

"It's for safety measures." Mirajane said with her ever present smile. "Gildarts uses a magic that reduces everything he touches to rubble, so he sometimes smashes public property when he's not paying attention."

"Whoa, that's amazing, isn't it Charle?" Wendy asked with starts shining in her eyes.

"Yeah, amazingly stupid." The blue cat muttered. In her opinion most of Fairy Tail's mages were lunatics, a statement most people would tend to agree with.

Soon, a figure could be seen approaching the guild. The form of a large man wrapped in a tattered black cloak and with a duffle bag slung over his shoulders came into view, and happy exclamations of "Here he is" and "He's really back" could be heard coming from the guild members.

Then they could finally see the strongest mage of Fairy Tail, Gildarts Clive. He was at least six feet tall, dwarfing most of the other guild members. His deep brown hair was spiked backwards and a short beard covered the lower half of his face. A face that currently held a heavy scowl.

The man walked into the guild and looked around, his scowl only deepening. "Welcome back." Mirajane cheerfully greeted, not disturbed the slightest by the expression on Gildart's face. The man approached Mirajane and looked at her with rather dismissing eyes.

"Jou-chan, I'm pretty sure that there was a guild called Fairy Tail somewhere around here…"

"You're right there. This is Fairy Tail. I'm Mirajane."

The man only raised an eyebrow. "Mira…?"

Suddenly, his whole personality did a completely 180. His eyes widened and a remarkably stupid grin spread across his face as he looked between Mirajane and the guild with the eyes of a child in a toy store.

"You look so different! And the guild's been renovated!"

Lucy only sweatdropped at that remark since she couldn't believe the supposedly strongest mage of Fairy Tail had missed the gigantic sign at the front of the building. The happy reunion was interrupted when suddenly Natsu charged at Gildarts while loudly shouting "Gildarts!"

The man looked up and immediately recognized the familiar patch of pink hair. "Oh! Natsu! Long time no see."

"Fight me Gildarts!"

The mage known as Salamander swung a fist at the cloak wearing new comer, but it never connected. With a grin Gildarts just swatted at Natsu and sent him straight into the ceiling while saying "Maybe later Natsu", much to the shock of a certain stellar spirit. It was rare to see Natsu so heavily outclassed. But Natsu wasn't offended the slightest. A look of pure admiration could be seen on the young man's face. "Y-you're so strong."

"You haven't changed old man." Gray greeted. Elfman, Mirajane's younger brother, also couldn't help but to welcome the long lost mage. "You're a real man!" And that meant something coming from Elfman.

"Well, there are some faces I've never seen before… This place has changed a lot." Gildarts said while looking at the present guild members and the new building alike. Nevertheless a true smile spread across his face.

"Gildarts."

The brown haired mage turned around and his eyes widened in surprise. "Master!"

Makarov, the guild master of Fairy Tail sat on his usual place on the counter. His normal fun loving self was replaced by the man who had earned his title as one of the strongest mages alive. With a serious expression he looked at Gildarts.

"How was the mission?" He simply asked.

Gildarts sheepishly scratched the back of his head with his right hand while laughing loudly.

"Sorry, it was a failure. I'm not good enough for it."

Everyone in the guild besides the master was stunned. Just what was the "100 Years Mission" that even the strongest member of Fairy Tail could not successfully complete it?

"I see… so even you couldn't do it." Makarov said quietly while looking down, apparently in deep thought.

"Sorry for leaving a stain on your name." Gildarts apologized. He felt genuinely sorry for failing his guild.

But Makarov just shook his head. "Don't worry about that. It's good to see you came back unharmed. As far as I know you're the first person to come back from it."

Gildarts sighed, happy that he had been forgiven. But when he spoke up again, he became all serious again. "Master… While I'd like to go home and rest for now, there's something I need to tell you. Something of great importance."

Everyone in the guild perked up at this. What could the strongest mage of Fairy Tail be talking about that even he considered it important enough to wait no longer than necessary to tell the master?

"When I was on my way back to the guild, I found a battlefield. Apparently someone had been hired to exterminate a demon tribe that had settled in the area. When I reached the site, the whole tribe had already been wiped out by one person. A young boy, probably not even 16 years old had done it all by himself. And the magic I felt on the battlefield made even me feel weary of this person."

If everyone was stunned from the "100 Year Mission", they were completely flabbergasted by this revelation. A boy strong enough to make Gildarts weary? That was indeed rare. The master, however, remained calm and merely raised an eyebrow.

"And? We both know that there are a handful of mages just as strong as you, perhaps even stronger. Who was it anyway? He should have been easy to identify if he was so young."

"That's the problem Master. I didn't recognize him. Nor was he on any of the wanted lists. I checked every possible resource I could find. No one has ever seen this mage before. And the damage he caused rivaled my own magic. To say I was intrigued would be an understatement. I tried talking to him, wanted to know what guild he was from. And this is the news I have for you."

Gildarts' voice was dead serious. "I have confirmed the existence of the Dark Guild 'Konoha'."

At this revelation, even the master couldn't keep his cool. The eyes of the old man widened and the grip on his walking stick hardened so much that his knuckles turned white. With a tone that almost bordered on a light panic attack he asked Gildarts how sure he was of this.

"I am afraid it IS true. The young man called himself 'Maelstrom' and wore a headband with a leaf insignia engraved on it. His movements were those of an experienced warrior. As for his battle prowess…"

Gildarts reached into his duffle back and pulled out a roughly two feet long package out of it and tossed it to the master who immediately unraveled it. Inside were the remains of a human arm. The sight made some of the guild members with a weaker stomach want to throw up, and even Erza, the battle-hardened warrior visibly paled at the sight.

"I was too reckless. I had just returned from the failed mission and wanted to lessen my shame by capturing one of Konoha's mages. However, I severely underestimated the boy. When I challenged him we were on equal footing for a while, even though my wounds from the mission had not yet healed. Thus I realized he was holding back. He didn't want to hurt me, but when I started getting serious, so did he. He caught me off guard, and I paid for it with my arm. With a single attack… he made sure that my left arm would never be able to use magic again. I had to sever it before the infection spread, the attack was that dangerous."

When Makarov carefully investigated the arm, the silence in the room finally broke. Loud chatter erupted and everyone wanted to know just what this Dark Guild "Konoha" was.

"Master, what is this 'Konoha' guild you're talking about? I've never heard of them before." Mirajane asked, voicing everyone's opinion on this. Even Natsu, who had finally dislodged himself from the ceiling, was curious.

Makarov sighed heavily as he returned the arm to Gildarts after re-wrapping it. "Well, 'Konoha' is the name of a rumored guild that is said to have appeared around a year ago. At first no one truly knew of their existence. It only became known to certain high ranking mages when scouts discovered a forest where no forest should have been. The scouts entered the forest but they were attacked by highly skilled combat mages. Only one of the scouts survived to tell the tale, while the rest was mercilessly defeated and killed. While no one knew anything about the combat mages or why they had attacked the scouts, the survivor had managed to secure an object: a headband with a leaf insignia. Ever since this day the rumors of Konoha have become more and more frequent, but without any other true sightings, the rumors stayed rumors. No one ever managed to penetrate the forest since strong illusionary spells had been casted upon it by an unknown source, hiding the very location of the forest from even the eyes of our best mages. Thus the forest has been named as the 'Forest of Haze', and no mage was allowed to approach it without permission from the council."

The old mage looked at the gathered mages of his guild. "But now that Gildarts has seen another member of them, we can only assume that Konoha DOESexist, and that they are on the move. I'll have to report this. I wouldn't be surprised if soon another joint mission comes up. That's why every member of Fairy Tail should remain alert! And by no means are you to attack those bearing the leaf insignia. Is this understood?"

"YES MASTER!" The gathered mages shouted in unison. But some of them weren't that uninterested in meeting one of these so-called "Konoha" mages. Especially Natsu, who was always eager to test his strength against new opponents, couldn't wait to meet a mage who made even the master and Gildarts cautious. Erza was preparing herself for the inevitable. She knew that in the case of another joint mission, she would be sent along. And if she was going to fight a mage on the level of Gildarts… she had to be prepared.

The news Fairy Tail had received had spread like a wildfire. Soon the other guilds heard of it, and not even three days later the high council had gathered to discuss the matter. Little did they know that in a hazy forest things were also getting interesting

**XxBreakxX**

Behind an imposing desk sat a lone man with silver-grey hair that seemed to defy gravity. The lower half of his face was covered by a black face mask. A black headband with a metal plate was wrapped around his head in a way that covered his left eye as well, leaving only his right eye visible. Said right eye was currently close in deep thought. The silver haired cyclops addressed the other man in the room. He stood on the other side of the desk and had short brown hair. His face was framed by a metallic construct that replaced that standard headband. Both the men were wearing a green flak jacket with a red swirl on the back, a clear sign that they belonged to the same military.

"So they finally found out, eh?"

"I am afraid so, Hokage-sama. But it was only a matter of time. We needed the income, and all our members can only hide for so long. We need the money since our economy is still adjusting to the recent… changes. But I am sure that as long as our barrier masters can uphold the illusion we will be safe." The young man answered.

The one addressed as "Hokage-sama" sighed heavily. He never should have accepted this job. But alas, it was better him than Danzo.

"But we should recall our forces for now, as we can't risk one of them getting captured. We do not know the full extent of the abilities our possible enemies possess. I'll trust you with this mission. You are to leave immediately." The one eyed man held up a file. "In this file is a list of the shinobi currently outside. Gather them all before you return and don't send them back one by one. It might be more dangerous to travel in a larger group, but I don't want to take any chances. Dismissed."

The brown haired man vanished and left the other man to sigh rather loudly once again. It was nothing short of a miracle the village hadn't collapsed by now, after all what had happened. The attack of the Akatsuki Leader Pein, and afterwards –

The Hokage interrupted this line of thought. Dwelling on the past would do him no good at this point. A knock could be heard from the door, and after a soft "Enter", it opened.

In came a beautiful young woman with short pink hair, dressed in a sleeveless red shirt and black formfitting pants. Striking green eyes looked at the man behind the desk.

"Hokage-sama, I've heard you are recalling the reconnaissance shinobi you sent out. Why is that? Has something happened?"

The silver haired man looked at the pink-haired girl with a slightly drooped eye. "How many times do I have to tell you Sakura? You don't have to call me 'Hokage-sama', it makes me feel old."

The pink haired girl called Sakura just laughed. "Sorry Kakashi-sensei, but sometimes I just can't resist. But anyways, what's Yamato-san's mission about?"

"I'm afraid the existence of our village has been discovered after all. It was only a matter of time, really, but I had hoped Konoha would remain secret for just a while longer. We can't let the secrets of our village get revealed to the world. The Magic Council would either exploit us in any way they can or exterminate us. Unfortunately, the rumors of the Dark Guild 'Konoha', as they call us, have been proven as correct. As far as the reports say, a mage of Fairy Tail has spotted one of our shinobi exterminating a pack of demons. I just hope Yamato can gather them before they are attacked by those so called 'guilds'. Some of their mages possess abilities that even Kage level shinobi cannot perform, although they are normally very specialized and physically weak. But regardless, the last thing we need is an all-out war with the mages of this country."

Sakura's mood instantly dropped when Kakashi spoke about the possibility of a war. It was only natural, the invasion of Pein was still fresh in her mind, and some of her closest friends were out there and far away from the safety of the village.

"Who sent you the message Kakashi-sensei? The one the mages spotted is in the most dangerous position of our shinobi, and if it's someone who isn't suited for fighting large groups – "

The famous eye-smile of Kakashi appeared. "Don't worry, Sakura. We had at least some luck considering just who they saw. They spotted the strongest of the shinobi we sent out, and the only person from the village who could best me in a battle."

Sakura looked up. "You mean - ?"

"Yes. It's time for Naruto to come home." In thoughts however, Kakashi added something that just wouldn't disappear from his mind. _"I just hope Naruto doesn't do anything stupid until Yamato finds him… Knowing him, he could directly march into the enemy's stronghold without even noticing it."_

**XxBreakxX**

The wind blew gently across the lands as a single person walked down the road. His crimson red cloak with black flames at the bottom occasionally flapped when a strong gust of wind came up. The black and orange overall under the cloak was slightly worn out from the long travelling. Spiky blond hair partially covered his black headband now since he hadn't gotten the time to cut his hair lately. His cerulean blue eyes observed everything around him, nothing escaping his gaze. But the most striking feature of this young man were the three whisker like scars he had on each of his cheeks.

This young man was the strongest shinobi of Konohgakure no Sato and the new Toad Sage of Mount Myobokuzan. His name? Uzumaki Naruto, the son of the Yondaime Hokage, student of the Rokudaime, and apprentice to Jiraiya of the Sannin.

The young sage had continued to travel across the lands after running into a mage from the famous gild Fairy Tail. Absentmindedly the blonde shinobi flexed his left hand, which was tightly wrapped in bandages. The bandages were red at some spots and indicated that the wounds had been bleeding heavily when he had treated himself. That mage had been strong, and considering just how hurt he had been…

"_I guess I'm lucky I had the advantage. If we had both been fully healed, none of us would have walked away with so little injuries. In fact, I'm sure that I might have been forced to kill him if I wanted to survive… But then again, that's without calculating in the Kyuubi's powers."_

"Oi, Naruto!" A voice suddenly called out.

Naruto turned around. The person knew his name, and considering that Naruto had failed to sense the person's presence, it was probably a ninja. Thus he didn't have to take a fighting stance. The only ninja in the area were the shinobi from Konoha. Naruto sighed. Would they ever be able to return home? The red cloaked shinobi was forced to interrupt his musings when the unknown person got closer. A small cloud of dust rose from the ground, and the newcomer waved at Naruto lazily.

The person in front of Naruto was a young man with black hair which was pulled backwards in a single short ponytail, a style that had earned him the nickname "pineapple head". A lazy expression seemed to be permanently etched onto his face, and the almost never smiling mouth currently held a still smoking cigarette between its lips.

"Hey Shikamaru, fancy meeting you here. What are you doing here anyways? I thought you were sent farther to the east?"

The young man named Shikamaru took a deep breath from his cigarette and calmly exhaled the smoke, but remained considerate enough not to blow the smoke into Naruto's face.

"I was, but once I had finished I decided to look for the others. I have some unpleasant news I'm afraid."

Naruto looked defeated. "Great, more bad news? Kakashi-sensei is going to have a heart attack if it goes on like that. It's bad enough the guilds discovered our existence because I ran into one of Fairy Tail's mages…"

Shikamaru groaned and covered his face with his left hand. Some days you really should stay in bed. "Troublesome… Just what we need. I've found out that a group of selected mages recently defeated Oración Seis, one of the strongest Dark Guilds in the area… And with them gone, they're free to concentrate on us. Really, just great."

He took another calming breath of his tobacco stick and exhaled loudly. Naruto just looked at his comrade with sympathy. Naruto knew that Shikamaru had recently been promoted to the position of the second chief strategist in the ninja forces, and he was only on this mission because the paperwork hadn't been processed yet. Shikamaru was no frontline fighter; his family's special techniques were for support and delay tactics, not direct combat. Yet Shikamaru had an unrivalled analytical mind, a mind so great it allowed him to fight even S-rank criminals on equal grounds.

"So, what should we do? Should we try to find the others? The messenger toad I sent to Kakashi-sensei told me that he would send someone to gather us, but if we work together it should go faster."

Shikamaru thought about Naruto's suggestion for a minute. "No, we should remain at a fixed location for now. Yamato is no tracker, and even if he finds Neji first his chances of finding us will shrink if we're on the move. Besides, we have no idea just exactly WHERE the others are. We were only told the quadrants we'd be operating in, remember Naruto?"

The blond shinobi grinned sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. What could he say? He was no thinker. Sure, he could come up with amazing strategies in battle, but those were mostly spur of the moment things. He was glad Shikamaru was good at these things.

"I guess we should head to the next town then. Any idea how far it is?" Shikamaru asked.

"Eh, I'm not sure… I think the next town is only two to three hours away though."

Shikamaru rolled with his eyes. "Troublesome… Have you still not memorized your area? Where's your map? Do you at least know what the city's called?"

Naruto's face crunched in concentration. "I lost the map in the battle… but I think it was called… Magagolia, or something."

"… I guess that's at least better than nothing. Any known magic guilds there?"

"Uh… I don't… think so?" Naruto answered hesitantly. He really should have studied the map better beforehand. Every shinobi only had a small but accurate map of the areas they were assigned to. Thus Shikamaru had to trust Naruto for this.

"… Fine then. Lead the way."

Little did the two shinobi know that Naruto had just started leading them to the very town where the most notorious guild of Earthland resided: Magnolia. And neither did the mages of Fairy Tail know what kind of trouble was heading their way.

And Yamato was still far away. And back in Konoha, Kakashi felt a shiver run down his spine. He really hated having accepted this job sometimes.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**REPOST OF SIR GODOT**


	2. Anima

**XxChapter 2: AnimaxX**

Deep in thought, Sakura walked through the village. The people were like always, chattering, laughing… living. Everything looked like it always did, and yet so many things had changed ever since that fateful day.

The day Pein, leader of the Akatsuki and wielder of the legendary Rinne'gan, had attacked the village of Konoha. He had come like the wind, completely unexpected, and had attacked them without mercy. A whole ninja village, the strongest of the five, had been unable to defeat a single man. Well, considering that Pein had used several dead bodies that point was debatable. And yet… Sakura shuddered when she remembered the pure, unadulterated power the man had possessed. With but a single gesture the whole village had been reduced to nothing but rubble.

And then he had come. Naruto. Her teammate and best friend, though she would never say that out loud. He had done what had seemed impossible. He had defeated the man who had called himself a god. A man, who had wielded what almost appeared like the powers of an actual god.

"Sakura-san? Are you alright?"

Sakura's head shot up when she realized that someone was talking to her. She had been so lost in thought that she hadn't even been looking where she was going. When Sakura looked up she saw a by now familiar face. Not that there many people with blue hair in Konoha anyways.

"Are you not well, Sakura-san? You seem a little distressed."

Sakura smiled a little. Who would have thought that she would talk to this person one year ago? So much had happened since this day…

"No, I'm alright. But thanks for your concern… Konan-san."

**XxBreakxX**

"I'm bored…" Natsu complained loudly. His head rested on the table while an occasional sigh escaped his lips.

The Dragon Slayer of Fire sat at a table in the Fairy Tail building together with Lucy, Gray, Juvia and Wendy. The Celestial Spirit Mage sighed, annoyance evident on her face.

"Drop it Natsu, and for the last time; We are not going out to look for a member of Konoha. The Master forbid it, remember?"

"She's right Natsu." Gray, the ice mage of Fairy Tail, added. "We barely won against Oración Seis. You shouldn't be so eager to throw your life away."

"… At least I'm not throwing my clothes away." Natsu muttered. Everyone turned their heads to look at Gray, who was, once again, clad in only his boxers. They no longer wondered about it. Craziness was apparently one of the criteria to join Fairy Tail.

"Crap! I did it again. Oh well, it's not like I care about it anyways…"

"I don't care what Jii-chan said! I wanna fight some strong guys, and that Maelstrom guy was just as strong as Guildarts! And if I beat him, everybody would be happy, too." Natsu had raised his head from the table and looked at his friends. At least he wasn't sulking anymore.

"I wonder about that…" Lucy muttered. "I mean, what do we know about Konoha anyways? What have they done to be considered as a Dark Guild? Exterminating demons doesn't really sound evil if you ask me."

The group hmm-ed collectively. It was Wendy who spoke up again first. "Well, we do know that some of them killed the scouts that had entered the forest. And that 'Maelstrom' guy really hurt Gildarts-san. If they were good guys they wouldn't do things like that."

"Not necessarily. Juvia knows that sometimes you are forced to do things you don't like to do. Perhaps they had no choice."

"Yeah, but still, you don't have to kill people just because you don't want them to go somewhere Juvia…" Lucy answered hesitantly. It was hard to say someone was evil when you knew next to nothing about them.

Silence returned to their table, a stark contrast to the rest of the guild which was bristling with excitement. Though there were occasional discussions about Konoha, most mages had decided to drop the matter. The Master had said not to interfere, and he wouldn't tolerate anything else. And yet every one of them had the feeling that it wouldn't be the last time they had heard from this mysterious Dark Guild.

**XxBreakxX**

Konan had taken Sakura to a small dango stand so the two of them could have something to eat. Once they had ordered, the two of them had chosen to sit on a bench in a nearby park. It was still a little strange for Sakura to walk or even talk with the former S-rank missing-nin. But despite the prejudice and ill will Konan had received when she had first come to the village, the paper master had preserved and had slowly been accepted. Of course Konan was no longer walking around in her black Akatsuki cloak; she had that much common sense luckily. Instead she now wore a short blue combat kimono with metallic bracers on her shins and forearms. Around her left arm was a forehead protector, but it didn't bear the leaf symbol. It was a scratched Ame forehead protector, the same she had been carrying ever since she had joined the Akatsuki. And just like Naruto would always keep the forehead protector he had received from Iruka, so would Konan keep the forehead protector she had gotten together with Nagato and Yahiko.

"What were you thinking about, Sakura-san? You looked like you were lost in your own little world." Konan asked the pink haired shinobi.

Sakura turned to Konan and hesitated a bit. She had gotten to know the origami ninja through Naruto after the whole "Earthland Disaster" as it had been dubbed. Sure, they somehow got along, but Sakura still had a little trouble being open around the elder ninja.

"Well, I've just been… thinking. About Konoha. Everyone acts like nothing is wrong. But how can they? We're not even in the same world anymore! We're trapped in this stupid forest like caged animals, and the only time shinobi are allowed to leave is when they go on scouting and income missions… Neither of which I'm actually suited for."

Konan simply nodded, her features as cool as always. "I can understand your worries, but look a little closer, Sakura-san. The people are not ignoring the fact that they are trapped in a different dimension far from home. They just try to put the fear behind them, to assure their loved ones that everything is alright, because if everyone was constantly worrying, the fear of the unknown would never leave their hearts."

Sakura thought of Konan's words and looked up at the blue sky. It looked just like the sky at home. And yet it was so different. Sakura was unable to keep the sadness she felt out of her vice. "Konan-san… Do you think we'll ever return home? Do you really think we'll find a way to summon this gigantic magic once again?"

"I honestly don't know, Sakura-san. But let's just believe that Naruto will find a way. If anyone can save this village, it's him. He already did it once, didn't he? Just like he saved Nagato…"

"_I… will believe in you...Uzumaki Naruto." _

Nagato's voice had been raspy and weak. But the eyes of the Rikudo Sennin's descendant had never been more full of life. A technique that surpassed even the boundaries of life and death… That was the true extent of Nagato's power. But it came had come at a heavy price. Nagato had already been exhausted when he had used his powers to restore the lives of the Konoha citizens he had killed. Perhaps it had been the same power that had attracted the giant vortex in the sky that had appeared shortly afterwards. Konan had been headed towards Amegakure to bury Nagato and Yahiko when it appeared.

The space-time magic, Anima.

No one in the Elemental Nations had ever seen something like this. And Konoha had still been in complete disarray when it had struck. Even Konan and Naruto, who had been a few miles away from the city, had been sucked in, just like the ninja who were on their way back to Konoha. But what was Anima? And why had it taken them to this strange world? In the year the shinobi had been stuck in Earthland, all they had managed to find out was a name. But what was its purpose? Where did it come from? And who controlled it? These questions had been put on a hold for a while. After the initial confusion, a new Hokage had to be elected since Tsunade had been in a coma at the time. Konan was sure, if the old war hawk Danzo had been elected, she wouldn't be here now. But she had been lucky. Without the daimyo, the jonin had voted, and since they had been facing an unknown crisis they didn't want to trust an old man who might just die before the village was completely rebuilt.

The first weeks had been tough. They had hidden the village in a forest the only Mokuton user of Konoha had created (a feat that had left him exhausted for a week), and the spies they had sent out had soon discovered that they were no longer in the Elemental nations; that not shinobi, but mages were fulfilling most of the jobs ninja did where Konoha had come from.

Konan had been placed under arrest due to her connection with the Akatsuki, but since Naruto had stood up for her, they hadn't treated her too badly (especially since every strong ninja was more than welcome given the new circumstances). After all, even though the whole village had just been sucked through a gigantic portal in the sky didn't change the fact that Naruto had saved the village from Pein, and heroes tend to have some privileges. It had taken a lot of effort for the villagers and shinobi to rebuild their homes, but thanks to a certain wood user it had gone faster than normally. And just when Kakashi had decided to send out emissaries to the cities of their new "home", disaster had struck. Danzo's private army, ROOT, had assassinated some people who had been trying to scout the new forest. The situation had turned from bad to grave. There was no way a government would trust an unknown militia after that stunt. Kakashi had tried to have Danzo arrested, but the old veteran had managed to slip away, taking at least two dozen ROOT ninja along with him. No one knew where he was hiding now, but they doubted they had seen him for the last time. But the damage was already done. Kakashi, the Rokudaime Hokage, had been forced to order their barrier master to cast an incredibly strong illusion over the village and the forest, making it impassable for any outsider. It had worked so far, but without any income they would have been unable to afford seeds and livestock. Thus they had begun to send out undercover shinobi. They took missions normally reserved for mages, but they had to be careful. Too many shinobi popping up at the same time were bound to attract attention.

It had worked fine so far. That is, until Sakura told Konan that Naruto had managed to get their cover blown.

"I wonder what the future holds… If things take a turn to the worse, there will be a war. Kakashi-sensei said that while we hold the advantage in numbers, this only applies as long as we face about two or three guilds. If the whole magic force of the country attacks us, we're toast. Some of the mages here are on a level comparable to a Sannin!" Sakura explained. She had tried to hide it, but she was really worried, especially since some of her friends were still out there.

"I'm afraid there isn't much we can do, Sakura-san. The magic council wouldn't simply accept us as a normal guild, especially when they hear that we're basically assassins. A lifelong imprisonment would probably be the best outcome, and if we choose to fight, we'll just become what everyone else already thinks we are. And… once blood has been spilt, the hatred will grow. This is the vicious cycle of war Nagato had tried to end…"

The two kunoichi continued to sit on the bench, their thoughts focused on the unknown future. Would Konoha be alright? Would they ever find a way home, or was this where Konoha would finally fall?

"Please be alright, Naruto." Sakura whispered softly. After all, in times like these, a hero was needed more than anything.

**XxBreakxX**

"Finally, we're here! I hadn't thought my guess would be THAT far off…"

"Naruto… If, and that's a very big if, we ever go on another mission together… I will never allow you to contribute anything to the mission but the fulfillment of your orders. Is. That. Clear?"

Two figures stood at the gates of the lively town of Magnolia. While one of them had sun-kissed blond and spiky hair, the other one had black hair that was held up in a single, thick ponytail, giving his head the appearance of a pineapple. And currently, the one with the pineapple hairdo was seriously pissed. His companion had said that the city they had just reached was perhaps three or four away. Oh, they would have reached the city in that time… if they were as fast as the Kiroi Senko, the "Yellow Flash" of Konoha. It had taken them six hours of almost non-stop running to reach the city of Magnolia, and Shikamaru was more than slightly pissed that Naruto had no idea about the geography of his assigned area.

"Hey, I already said I was sorry. Besides, I never had to plan things like that! Ero-Sennin was the one who did the planning; I just tagged along on the training trip!"

"Ugh, just stop being so troublesome and let's find a place where we can get something to eat. I'm starving."

"Another reason why I want to get home. Now the only place where I can get ramen is in Konoha. Ah, sweet Ichiraku Ramen… How long has it been?"

Shikamaru delivered a light punch to the back of Naruto's head, returning the Toad Sage's consciousness from his dream world back to reality.

"Quit it Naruto. Seriously, this no longer a case of 'liking' the food, you're addicted."

The two shinobi began their search for a restaurant or at least a market where they would be able to buy something to fill their growling stomachs. But since they didn't want to draw attention to themselves they had to do it normally, and that took its time. Unfortunately their search proved rather fruitless, and after half an hour of searching they were still as hungry as before.

"Shikamaru… I can't take this anymore… I'm starving." Naruto whined.

"You're not the only one who's hungry Naruto, so quit your whining. This is getting troublesome… Where the hell can we find something to eat in this town?"

Naruto's and Shikamaru's silent prayers were answered in the form of what Naruto would later describe as "a silver haired angel carrying salvation bringing food at the side of a demon".

Translated, this meant that Mirajane and her younger brother Elfman were currently walking down the street with their hands bags filled with food. The guild had run out of some supplies, and since Mirajane was the one responsible for the bar, she had volunteered to do some grocery shopping. Elfman, who would never allow a woman to do the man's job of carrying the heavy bags, accompanied her. Thus an interesting meeting was about to happen.

"Shikamaru! Do you see that! Food! There IS food in this town!" Naruto exclaimed exuberantly. His mouth had already begun to water when his eyes fell on some noodles he spotted in one of the bags.

Mirajane and Elfman were quite confused at the sight. They had never seen those two young men, but they were obviously hungry. Being the kind-hearted soul she was, Mirajane approached the two of them, choosing to talk to the one who was not dancing a "happy dance".

"Um, excuse me, but are you two alright? You seem to be lost. My name is Mirajane, and you are?"

Shikamaru eyed the young woman in front of him carefully. His sharp mind analyzed both her and the intimidating looking man behind her. Said man was eyeing the two shinobi as well. It was clear that he would protect the woman if anything happened, his body language was as clear as day for Shikamaru. But why did the two of them set off so many alarm bells in the back of Shikamaru's head?

"The name's Shikamaru, and well, we're not really lost… We just got here and were looking for something to eat, but our search proved rather fruitless till now… And just ignore Naruto over there; he gets a little weird without his noodle soup."

"Well, my brother and I just came back from shopping. Why don't you come with us to our guild? I'm sure the Master wouldn't mind if you two just ate a meal there."

And now Shikamaru's danger sense had just gone into overdrive. A guild! The two of them were mages; that was why he had felt so uncomfortable! They hadn't noticed yet that he and Naruto were from Konoha. Now, if Shikamaru could just talk him and his partner out of this situation…

"Really, we can get food?! Awesome! Let's go Shikamaru! And thank you so much Mirajane-chan! How can we ever repay you?"

With a jump Naruto had landed between Mirajane and Shikamaru, smiling at the silver haired woman with the deepest gratitude he could muster. Mirajane smiled in return and looked at the blond sunshine called Naruto…

… and immediately froze when she saw the headband with the leaf symbol, hidden behind the blond haired boy's locks.

"_They're from Konoha!"_

Elfman saw his sister freeze and noticed it as well. He wasted no time and leapt at the blonde, his right arm already transforming into that of a mighty beast's. Naruto almost missed the attack since he wasn't prepared for an assault, but his honed ninja reflexes kicked in at the last second, making him dodge the attack with a back flip.

"Hey, what was that for?! Are you crazy or something?" Naruto shouted angrily.

"Silence you villain! A man should never do evil! I, Elfman of Fairy Tail, will punish you!" Elfman answered loudly. The thought that his opponent could be very dangerous or that the master had forbidden them to engage any members of Konoha in combat was promptly forgotten.

"Seriously, just what the hell is wrong with this guy?!" Naruto shouted while dodging Elfman's monstrous fists. Without Sage Mode, his punches weren't nearly as effective as this guy's, and while Naruto had discovered that he could keep Sage Mode longer in this world, it also took longer to synchronize for him. So that was pretty much impossible to do while dodging Elfman's furious fists. But while Elfman was stronger, Naruto was faster. The sage used his superior speed to kick his opponent in the back, sending him flying into, or rather through, a house. Naruto wasted no time and hurried after his opponent, leaving Shikamaru to deal with Mirajane.

"Damn, we've attracted way too much attention…" Shikamaru muttered under his breath. Shortly after Elfman's outburst Mirajane had opted to attack him with pretty decent hand-to-hand combat. Unfortunately, the citizens had of course noticed the battle, and were fleeing the scene. This was bound to alert the other members of the guild in no time. Shikamaru calculated that they probably had less than five minutes before enemy reinforcements appeared.

After another clash, Shikamaru and Mirajane separated, the latter threateningly glaring at the lazy genius. "What do you want in this town, Konoha mages? Are you so arrogant that you think the two of you could take out the whole Guild of Fairy Tail?"

Shikamaru chuckled. "To be honest, we just wanted to grab a bite. Naruto over there is pretty bad with memorizing a map though, so we had no idea that you guys were in this town… Now that I think about it, I'll have to make sure Naruto gets punished for being so stupid… Always dragging me into such messes…"

Mirajane was a little unsettled at how calm her enemy seemed. Was he that sure of his own strength, or was he trying to catch her off guard? Either way, the former S-Class Mage wouldn't let them get away. But it was too late; as Shikamaru had gathered the chakra he needed and only formed a quick handseal to use his technique on his unsuspecting victim.

"Kagemane no Jutsu (Shadow Possession), success." The black haired chunin smirked. His opponent hadn't noticed that he had positioned himself in front of the sun during their short fight. Now he only had to wait for Naruto to finish his opponent (which hopefully wouldn't take too long) and then they could make their escape. Perhaps Naruto could summon a frog for them to flee with, even though it took almost twice the amount than back on their world. Well, at least it still worked at all.

"What kind of spell is this? I can't move at all!" Mirajane exclaimed. _"Damn, I let my guard down! I hope Elfman is alright, his opponent looked more like a fighter than this one…"_ Looking for any way to escape the technique Mirajane looked frantically around, until her eyes saw something strange.

"Is this… a shadow?!"

"I'm not surprised you realized it this quickly. I can tell you have lots of battle experience." Shikamaru calmly said. "This 'spell' as you call it, is my family's special technique. Only the members of the Nara Clan know how to perform it. As for how it works… I'm not that stupid to actually explain you how it works. Let's just say I could do more than simply hold you, though I don't plan to use those techniques." Shikamaru really hoped she wouldn't see through his fake confidence. He could feel that this woman was way stronger than she looked, and if she got serious he'd be at a disadvantage, especially since he was no front fighter and this girl seemed to specialize in direct assaults.

"But I also know you're trying to think of a way to stall time long enough for your friends to arrive, and that you're probably considering using your full power to break through my Kagemane, but you're cautious since you don't know how strong I really am."

Mirajane was shocked. This young man was reading her like an open book. Was this part of his magic too? She couldn't allow herself to look intimidated.

"So you're just planning on standing there... You seem pretty sure that your blond friend is able to beat my brother."

Shikamaru frowned. "I'm not sure that Naruto can beat your brother, I know he can. After all, he's one of the, if not THE strongest warrior of Konoha. I seriously doubt anything but a whole guild could stop him. I'm surprised you haven't heard of him… Didn't one of your guild members fight with him?"

"One of our guild members…?" Mirajane asked out loud. Who could he be talking about? The answer hit her like a ton of bricks. There was only one mage of Fairy Tail who had fought against a wizard from Konoha. The words of Gildarts echoed through her mind as she realized the danger her brother was in.

"_The young man called himself 'Maelstrom' and wore a headband with a leaf insignia engraved on it..."_

"Naruto… Maelstrom… You can write the name with kanji for 'Maelstrom'. Does that mean that blond boy is the mage that took Gildarts' arm?!" Mirajane was horrified. Elfman might have gotten stronger, but he was nowhere ready to fight an opponent of that caliber.

And her horror only grew when Shikamaru chuckled. "That Naruto… He always tells us that his name doesn't mean 'fishcake', but 'maelstrom'. I guess that Gildarts person was the first one to actually understand the name correctly, and if my estimations are correct, said maelstrom should come back around… now."

Just as Shikamaru said the word "now", a wall beside Mirajane burst open and a large figure stepped through it. At first glance Mirajane thought that perhaps Elfman had managed to escape or even catch the blond by surprise, but her hopes quickly disappeared when she saw that it was not one large figure, but two, and the smaller one was carrying the larger one over his shoulder. Mirjane couldn't help but to fear for her brother when she stared at the mage called Maelstrom. His eyes… they had changed. They were no longer blue, but golden with long rectangular eye slits.

"You even used Sage Mode, Naruto? Was he that tough?" Shikamaru asked in surprise.

Naruto shook his head as he dropped Elfman to the ground. "Nah, I just wanted to conserve my energy. I had to use some clones, but I managed to go into Sage Mode before the guy could deal damage to me. His magic was kinda creepy though… I mean, first his arms mutated, and then the rest of his body as well! It was like the Cursed Seal all over again!"

"No time to complain Naruto, we have to get out of here. Their friends will probably arrive soon, and I can't hold my Kagemane much longer. Please cover our escape, ok?"

"Yeah, yeah. Just because you're higher ranked than me doesn't mean you can order me around Shikamaru." Naruto muttered while preparing a jutsu.

"Actually, it means just that Naruto, and for your idiocy alone I'm considering asking Hokage-sama to assign you D-rank missions for the next month."

Naruto paled at that, making Mirajane wonder just what those two were talking about and who this "Hokage" person was. "You wouldn't… You would." Yes, sometimes Shikamaru could get really mean, especially when he had gotten into troublesome situations because of others.

"Hurry up Naruto. I won't be able to hold her much longer." Shikamaru urged.

The young sage finished gathering his chakra and prepared to bite his thumb so he could summon a toad, but things came differently. Just when Naruto was about to draw blood, he heard someone shouting something like "Ice Make: Geyser!"

Naruto and Shikamaru were forced to jump away when suddenly two huge pillars of ice erupted from the ground, forcing Shikamaru to release his Kagemane no Jutsu. The blond shinobi was impressed. To create so much ice out of nothing, even Haku had been unable to do this without draining his reserves considerably. Apparently the reinforcements had arrived. Shikamaru cursed under his breath. They had been so close to getting away, but now they had attracted even more attention. The tactician looked at the newcomers. There were four of them, not counting the flying blue cat. One was a girl with blond hair and a short ponytail she had on the left side of her head. She had hurried towards the woman Shikamaru had just released. The next two were both young men, one with black hair and clad only in his boxers, the other with… pink hair? Did Sakura have relatives here? However, it was the last one that caught Shikamaru's attention. Of course he had heard of the famous Fairy Tail, even if he hadn't known that they were located in this town. But it was only because of this woman he understood with which guild they were dealing.

Erza Scarlet. S-Class Mage of Fairy Tail, nicknamed "Titania".

"Naruto… I think we're in deep trouble this time. And just so you know, I blame you for this."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because you've led us directly into the town of Fairy Tail for god's sake! And that one over there is Erza Scarlet, an S-Class Mage!"

"What?! These guys are from Fairy Tail? No way!"

While the shouting between the two ninja continued, Lucy turned to Mirajane, who appeared a little worn out, but fine besides that. Elfman, who had by now been retrieved by Gray, looked much worse. It looked like the self-proclaimed "manliest" member of Fairy Tail had received quite a beating, and was still out cold.

"Mira-san, who are these guys? And what do they want? We heard the screaming and ran here as fast as we could, and some of the others should be here soon as well."

"Lucy, you have to be careful!" Mirajane urged her friend before talking to the rest of the group as well. "Those two are mages from Konoha, I saw the headband! And Natsu, Gray, Lucy: Don't fight the one in the orange cloak! He's the one who defeated Gildarts!"

This one sentence shocked everyone present. Erza swallowed nervously, but also calmed herself. She couldn't allow herself to show fear or hesitation. If worst came to worst, she would have to distract the two dark guild members so that the others would survive until the master or Gildarts arrived. She stepped forward, using her Requip magic to summon a large double-edged sword in her right hand.

"Everyone, stand back. I'll handle the blonde one. Natsu, Gray, I'd like you two to fight the other one. Lucy, I know you could help as well but I need you two protect Mirajane and Elfman. Mira cannot access all of her power yet."

The three members of Fairy Tail nodded, Natsu and Gray stepping up besides Erza, while Happy quietly floated to Lucy.

"So you're those Konoha flunkies... I've been waiting for a chance to fight you guys!" Natsu exclaimed eagerly, a look of excitement clearly visible on his face.

"Calm down Natsu. We can't allow ourselves to be caught off guard." Gray said to his partner in crime. He was definitely the more level-headed one of the two.

Meanwhile, the two Konoha shinobi had also finished their little argument. Shikamaru rummaged through one of his pockets and fished out another cigarette, wasting no time to light it and take a deep breath of the calming smoke. Working with Naruto always increased his craving for the tobacco sticks.

"So damn troublesome… Looks like we'll have to fight our way out of this, Naruto. Well, at least they decided the match ups for us. Please hold back with your skills as much as possible though, we don't want to destroy this city after all."

Naruto simply nodded. He wished he could avoid fighting these guys, but they wouldn't believe them if they said that they weren't a dark guild. And thanks to Danzo's little scheme, they had already killed innocents in the eyes of the world. His golden eyes glared at the strongest female of Fairy Tail.

"Alright, let's do this!"

The Battle of Magnolia had begun.

**XxBreakxX**

At the same time, several hundred miles away, the mage known as Mystogan silently walked through a field covered in mist. The cloak and bandana hid his face almost completely, leaving only his eyes visible. Suddenly, he stopped. He didn't move as he spoke.

"I see… so you're the disturbance I've felt. Who are you?"

A ripple spread across the empty space in front of the illusion using mage. The ripple then began to swirl, until it formed the silhouette of a man covered by the heavy fog.

"I'm impressed you managed to detect me… You're truly one of Fairy Tail's S-class mages, Mystogan… Or was it… Jellal?"

Mystogan narrowed his eyes. "Who are you?" He said while one hand already gripped one of the staffs on his back.

"Who, little old me? I'm just an innocent passerby…"

The mist cleared slightly and Mystogan could for the first time clearly see this mysterious person. One thing would forever be burned into his mind.

A blood-red eye looking at him through an orange mask.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**REPOST OF SIR GODOT**


	3. The Principle of Battle

**XxChapter 3: The Principle of BattlexX**

The air was tense and heavy as the combatants were about to get started. On the one side were Naruto and Shikamaru, both of them wearing serious expression on their faces. They knew that since they were fighting in enemy territory, they had to be especially careful. There was no telling when another Fairy Tail member would join the battle.

"Shikamaru." The lazy genius turned his head to Naruto.

"I'll try to take the battle to the outside of the city. I won't be able to hold back enough that it won't damage the city and its people. You try and stay alive until I come back, ok?"

Shikamaru sighed loudly while exhaling the smoke of his cigarette. Nevertheless, he was smirking. "While I do dislike the idea of us splitting up, it's better if you can defeat 'Titania' as fast as possible. Luckily my techniques are meant to delay and stop opponents, but don't take too long, my cigarettes won't last if you fight her for the rest of the day."

The blonde shinobi nodded and gave his partner a thumbs-up. He understood what Shikamaru was really saying.

_"__Make sure you win. I'll keep your back free." _They were comrades that had lived through more than one life and death battle together.

"Got it." Naruto said.

With a sudden burst of speed, Naruto turned around and raced down the street and out of the city, towards the slowly setting sun. Time was of the essence. Once it got dark, Shikamaru's abilities would be useless, and the black haired tactician had only a few flashbangs.

When Erza saw how Naruto hightailed out of Magnolia, she wasted no time to race after the blonde. For a moment she expected the smoker to interfere, but he didn't even glance at her when she rushed past him. His eyes were solely fixed on Natsu and Gray.

"_Please be alright guys."_ Erza mentally prayed when she reached the city gates. In the distance she could see the orange cloak of "Maelstrom", the fabric fluttering through the wind that had picked up. The grip on her sword tightened when she reached him. Both of them stared at the other, sizing their opponent up.

Naruto was a little anxious. He was hungry and tired, plus he had been travelling for several hours before entering the city. Not the best conditions to fight another S-Class Mage, especially when he was still a little sore from fighting the last one. But this time he had been able to prepare himself. Unfortunately his Sage Mode would probably last for only another three minutes if he didn't replenish it, even with the high density of the natural energy surrounding him.

As a sage, Naruto had long since figured out the difference between mages and shinobi. Ninja combined both their physical and their mental energies to create chakra which powered their bodies and jutsu. Mages on the other hand could draw on the magical energy from around them, essentially natural energy, and shape it through their own mental energy. This method was much more complicated than using chakra, but it was also less dangerous. A ninja who burned through all of his mental and physical energy would die, no matter what. Mages had to filter out the overpowering force of nature (like Naruto did so he wouldn't turn into a frog), but when mages exhausted their mental energies, they didn't risk their lives. They simply couldn't use spells anymore until they recovered.

This woman before him had more mental energy than some jonin Naruto knew, and the way she moved told Naruto that she had experience using it. For the shortest moment Erza's image was replaced by another. Naruto shook his head, banishing the image of the woman with long scarlet hair and a gentle smile from his mind.

"_I can't allow myself to get distracted, but damn! They really do look alike…"_

A few yards away, Erza was wondering why her opponent was furiously shaking his head. Maybe he was still fatigued from the battle with Gildarts? It didn't matter. She had to capture this man, and if that was not possible, eliminate him. He was a member of a dark guild and was a threat to her friends.

"Mage of Konoha," Erza spoke up. "My name is Erza Scarlet of Fairy Tail. As a mage I cannot allow an evil mage of a dark guild to remain free. I would ask you to surrender yourself, but judging by your actions I assume that this is not a possibility."

"I'm afraid you're right, Kakashi-sensei would have my head if I allowed myself to get captured. I don't want to fight you, I didn't want to fight that hobo-guy either, but he attacked me… I hate unnecessary bloodshed." Naruto answered.

Despite the serious situation, Erza sweatdropped. Hobo-guy? The blonde was apparently fearless if he called Gildarts, the one said to be the strongest wizard of Fairy Tail, a hobo… On the other hand, Gildarts was pretty laid back and didn't care much about nicknames. He'd probably think it was funny.

Titania regained her composure. "You say you dislike unnecessary bloodshed… Then why did your guild kill the scouts of the magic council without any reasons? No honorable person would allow such a thing."

Naruto, who was using the time he was not moving to refill his sage chakra, answered with only the barest amount of hope in his voice. "I guess you wouldn't believe me if I told you that that was all just one big misunderstanding?"

Erza's eyes narrowed. "No, I wouldn't."

"I was afraid you'd say so. Well, I guess there's no way to avoid this battle." Naruto said with a sigh. He raised his fists and assumed one of the stances of Kawazu Kumite, the style he had been taught by the Toad Elder Fukasaku.

"Let's go wild!" The Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tailed Fox shouted as he charged the scarlet haired mage.

**XxBreakxX**

Shortly after Naruto's and Erza's departure, the laid back genius had been assaulted by both Natsu and Gray. Lucy had opted to stay by Mirajane's and Elfman's side for now, but the way she was grabbing her keys suggested that she would jump in and help her friends if the situation called for it. The strange blue cat had joined her, staring at the on-going battle with wide eyes.

"_Troublesome… Those two are pretty good. Fire and ice in an almost perfect tandem… If I wasn't used to dodging things like that I'd have probably been grilled and frozen a dozen times over by now."_ Shikamaru thought while he was busy analyzing the styles of his opponents. While the pink haired Dragon Slayer was more of a close combat specialist, the Ice Mage was supporting him with long-distance attacks. Shikamaru began to worry a little when an ice arrow missed him only narrowly. They were getting used to his movements as well.

"Hey, stop running away and fight me you bastard!" Natsu shouted angrily. He had been looking forward to a tough battle, not a lazy guy who only kept on dodging his attacks.

"Karyu no Tekken! (Fire Dragon's Iron Fist)"

Engulfing his fists in burning hot fire, Natsu charged his opponent once again. Shikamaru, who just stood still for a moment, smirked unbeknownst to his two opponents. Just when Natsu was about to hit him with his punch, Shikamaru brought his hands together and formed a seal. Gray noticed this and tried to warn his friend.

"Natsu! Watch out! He's planning something!"

"Kagemane no Jutsu, success." The pineapple head muttered under his breath. Shikamaru then jumped backwards – as did Natsu, who just muttered a surprised "Wha?!" before landing near Gray, who didn't know that the Dragon Slayer was now affected by Shikamaru's technique.

"Good job at dodging Natsu, I don't know what's planning but we shouldn't get too close to him." Gray said to his partner as he walked up to him.

"Gray, be careful I-!" Natsu began, but to his horror and Gray's surprise, Natsu's fist was suddenly buried in Gray's stomach, causing the Ice Mage to buckle over in pain. The pain was intense, and almost caused the black haired mage to miss the follow up attack from Natsu. Lucy was staring at the scene in shock. She was so busy figuring out what was wrong with Natsu that she didn't see how Shikamaru was performing remarkably similar attacks to Natsu, only that he seemed to battle thin air.

"Natsu! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Gray shouted angrily while both dodging Natsu's attacks and clutching his stomach. That blow had come out of the blue and had caught him completely off guard.

"I don't know what's wrong Gray! My body's moving on its own, I can't control it!" Natsu shouted, his expression a mixture of shock, confusion, and even a slight hint of fear.

It was then that Gray's eyes wandered to their enemy, and his guess was correct. He saw how the smoking mage was performing the same attacks as Natsu.

"What kind of magic is that?" Happy, the blue cat, asked in horror. Natsu and one of his best friends were fighting each other and thus had no chance to go after the true enemy.

"It's his shadow." Lucy and Happy looked back to Mirajane, who was leaning on a nearby wall. She was breathing hard. The battle must have taken more out of her than she had thought.

"What do you mean 'his shadow'? Is he using shadow magic?"

Mirajane nodded. "Apparently he can use his shadow to connect it with his opponents. He used it to hold me down while the one called 'Maelstrom' was preparing their escape. Luckily you came or they would have gotten away."

"Do you know of any way to stop it Mira-san? Natsu and Gray need all the help they can get!" Lucy asked pleadingly.

The former S-Class Mage could only shake her head. "All I know is that the stronger the person is, the harder it gets to manipulate him. Considering the ease he's controlling Natsu with… this guy is really strong. But if Natsu and Gray can somehow cut him off from his light source, they might cause the shadow to vanish."

"_That's it!"_ Lucy thought. She turned her head back to the battlefield, where Gray was fighting a losing battle. "Natsu! Quickly, shoot a fireball at the Konoha mage!"

The three fighters heard what Lucy shouted, and Natsu immediately began preparing for the attack. He had no idea why Lucy would want him to do something like that, but he trusted her. Gray was too busy to analyze the meaning behind Lucy's words, but Shikamaru caught on to it immediately.

"_A fireball? That's not good; I can't turn my body in time to–"_

"Karyu no…" Natsu started, his cheeks swelling up considerably. Then, with a deep breath, he unleashed an enormous fireball roughly in Shikamaru's direction. "Hoko! (Fire Dragon's Roar)"

The fireball missed the Konoha shinobi, and instead hit a wall somewhere between them. But when the fireball exploded in a shower of light, Lucy knew that her plan had been successful, and indeed, just when the light started to die down, Natsu noticed that he could control his body again.

"Woohoo, I can use my body again! Damn, that was creepy, I felt like one of Bixlow's puppets for a while."

Natsu's exuberant exclamations were cut short when Gray hit him on the back of the hard with enough force to make the Dragon Slayer of Fire stumble forwards. Angrily the pink haired mage turned around.

"Hey, what the hell was that for?!" They glared at each other and were almost pressing their foreheads together.

"For being a complete idiot! Seriously, thanks to you the guy had us almost beaten! I know it's not all your fault, but be a little more careful next time, and those punches HURT for god's sake!"

Their little argument would probably have continued if they hadn't heard someone chuckling in the near vicinity. When the chuckling grew to a full blown laughter, they turned their heads simultaneously and were confronted with something even many Konoha ninjas had never seen before, a laughing Shikamaru.

"Hey! What's so damn funny you freakin' pineapple head?!" Natsu yelled, raising his right fist in a threatening manner.

Shikamaru's laugh returned to a normal chuckle before it died down again. The lazy chunin simply took another drag on his cigarette before dropping the remains on the ground and extinguishing it with his left foot, yet the amusement didn't completely leave his face.

"Sorry, it's just that you two arguing like that reminded me of Naruto and a… former associate. It was rare that both got so riled up, but it did happen."

A heavy sigh escaped the Nara's lips. He turned to Lucy, who flinched slightly when she felt his gaze on herself.

"I'm impressed you managed to come up with a tactic against my Kagemane no Jutsu so quick, girlie. Not that it will work twice, but the fact alone that you noticed how another light source would simply cancel my shadow is impressive. Holding you guys off might be tougher than I thought… That's troublesome…"

When Natsu, Gray and Lucy saw how Shikamaru acted, they couldn't help to remember the conversation they had had earlier that day, how Juvia had said that sometimes people were forced to do things they didn't want to do. Could this be the case for the shadow mage who fought them?

Mirajane, who said seen more of these two also couldn't help but wonder how two persons like that could be part of a dark guild, especially that Naruto guy. Sure, when he had been attacked he had shown a serious side, the mentality of a warrior, but before that? He had acted almost like Natsu, albeit a little less extreme. If they could get some answers out of this guy… However, Mirajane didn't expect Natsu to speak out what she was thinking.

"You act weird for a dark guild mage… Are you really evil?" The Dragon Slayer asked with a frown. Even if he loved to fight, he only battled those who either wanted to or who deserved it. This guy didn't seem to fit in either category.

Shikamaru looked at them with a defeated look in his eyes.

"You ask me if I'm evil? That's not an easy question. Do you want to know if my comrades and I plan to endanger innocent people? Then the answer is no. Do you want to know if I can kill people in cold blood? Then the answer is yes."

At this everyone looked at him wide eyed. He had said these words without any hesitation or apparent guilt. And this didn't happen after killing only one person. Natsu's fists clenched in anger.

"Mages don't kill! Magic should be used to protect people!" He shouted angrily. The looks that came from Gray, Lucy and Mirajane held the same message. And what did Shikamaru do?

He started chuckling again.

This had everyone stunned. He was laughing at them? Was this guy really that much of a bastard? Had their impression of him been completely wrong?

"You think we're mages? Man, that's a laugh. I shouldn't be surprised though; we don't really go around and tell everyone…"

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?!" Gray shouted. His hands were already beginning to prepare for another ice spell.

Shikamaru looked at them with an almost sad expression. Yet his voice remained strong and firm. It was the voice of a man who had seen war.

"Konoha is not a true dark guild as you know them… In fact, we still follow the path we've always been following. The Path of the Shinobi."

Suddenly Shikamaru was interrupted as his limbs were restricted by water that came at him from an unknown location. Before the lazy genius could even wonder what was happening, he felt a blade pressed against his throat.

"That's as far as you go buddy." A deep voice said. Shikamaru turned his head slightly and saw a man with long, black, backwards spiked hair and piercings in his face. The piercings reminded him a little of the invasion of Pain, but these thoughts were quickly banished. There were more pressing matters that needed to be attended to, namely the sword that grew out of the hand of his captor.

"I guess that's what I get for getting distracted… So troublesome"

"Gazille! Juvia!" Lucy shouted, never happier that the two former Phantom Lord Mages had joined their guild. Juvia came out of an alley, the water bindings attached to Shikamaru still connected to her body. When she saw Gray and the relieved look on his face, she blushed. Gazille simply grunted, though he was kinda happy that they were glad to see him.

"We wondered what was going on. The rest of the mages should be here soon. I guess our guest here will have to answer some questions." The Iron Dragon Slayer said.

Gray interrupted him. "Yeah, but we should send someone after Erza! She's fighting that Maelstrom guy, and we don't know if she can defeat him. He's on Gildarts' level after all."

Natsu stared at Shikamaru with barely contained ire when he heard Gray's words. Erza was like a sister to him, an extremely violent sister, but still. "If your friend hurts her in any way, I'll never forgive you."

The lazy genius hadn't said anything since his capture. But he was strangely calm for someone who had a sword at his throat. He seemed pretty interested in a group of birds that sat on one of the nearby rooftops though. Mirajane, who followed his gaze, frowned. These birds looked strange… and she had never seen birds like these before in this city. Could it be?!

"Everyone, look out!"

Her words alerted everyone, but it was too late. A smirk appeared on Shikamaru's face.

"Ninpo: Choju Giga. (Art of Drawn Beast Mimicry)"

The voice was barely more than a whisper, but the result was disastrous for the Fairy Tail mages. The birds on the rooftop exploded in a shower of ink, and transformed into something akin to lions, which wasted no time to attack the mages. Gazille and Juvia were only distracted for a moment. But this moment was all the second hidden assailant needed.

Wooden beams exploded from the ground and forced the Iron Dragon Slayer to release his hold, since one of the beams erupted directly under the captured Konoha shinobi. The water that restrained him faded away when Juvia was forced to defend herself against one of the ink lions that attacked her. While these beasts weren't very strong, their surprise attack had turned the tide of the battle to Shikamaru's favor. Soon, the black beasts were defeated, turning into black ink, and everyone returned their attention to the self-proclaimed shinobi.

"That was a close one…" Shikamaru said as he stood on top of his wooden beam, which now reached at least thirty feet into the air, along with two other beams that reached the same height.

An unknown person landed on the pole on Shikamaru's right. He seemed pretty young, around Shikamaru's age, and wore completely black attire that strangely enough left his mid-section visible. The young man was quite pale and had a smile on his face that looked normal at first glance, but the longer you looked at it the falser it became. It was quite unsettling. "That's quite unlike you to get surprised like that, Shikamaru-san. Ino-san will never let you hear the end of this if she hears about it."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Great, just what I need… Just don't tell her about this, okay? I haven't eaten anything all day, and to tell you the truth it's getting to me. Even I can't think as usual when I'm starving."

Then, another person landed on the third wooden beam. He was definitely older than the other two and had short brown hair. His face was framed by an open black face mask and a forehead protector that went down to his chin at both sides. Just like Shikamaru, he wore a green flask vest and black cargo pants.

"You sure are lucky we came here on time. Without Sai's tracking technique it would have taken us much longer. Anyway, where's Naruto? Sai had originally detected him in the same area as you–"

A loud explosion resounded through the area on the outskirts of the city. It was the area Naruto had chosen to fight Erza at.

"Oh well, I guess that answers my question. Sai, I think it's time to return home. If you would, please?"

"Of course, Yamato-taicho." The ink using ninja replied. With a lightning fast motion, Sai drew a scroll from one of his pouches, and started to channel his chakra into it. The scroll began to unroll to its whole length of at least twenty feet, and flattered in the wind as the technique was completed.

"Choju Giga."

The black lines that had been visible to the Fairy Tail mages suddenly came to life and began to peel themselves from the scroll. Soon, a gigantic Chinese dragon had emerged from the scroll and flew around the three wooden bars the Konoha nin were occupying. A loud roar resounded through the area as the dragon circled around the top of the three wooden beams. For the members of Fairy Tail, this sight was completely unexpected due to another reason.

Gazille couldn't believe what he was seeing. "An ink dragon?! No way!"

"That magic! Isn't that Reedus' Picto magic?!" Gray exclaimed, more a statement than a question. It made much more sense than Gazille's ridiculous thoughts about a possible Ink Dragon Slayer.

"But I thought you couldn't create living things with it." Mirajane added. She had finally regained enough strength to stand without help again. The former S-Class Mage was angry at herself. If she could simply access her old powers again, like she had in the battle against Freed…

While the mages of Magnolia were still distracted by the appearance of a gigantic dragon out of a scroll, the three Konoha shinobi were climbing on its white back. This pulled the mages out of their stupor, and they immediately began to fire at it to take it down.

"Ice Make: Arrow!" Gray shouted, firing his projectile at the escaping dragon. Seeing this Natsu and Gazille wasted no time and joined their comrade with their own attacks. They took a deep breath simultaneously and prepared to take the dragon down.

"Karyu/Tetsuryu no Hoko! (Fire/Iron Dragon's Roar")

The iron and fire combined in the air, creating a ball of molten iron which headed straight for Sai's ink creature. Unfortunately, said ink creature wasn't very good at dodging fast objects, and none of its passengers were really good at stopping such attacks; they were trained to dodge these. Just when all hope seemed lost, the plans of Fairy Tail were foiled yet again. If anybody would have looked at the rooftops right now, they would have seen the shadow of a person racing to the dragon's location at an insane speed. The shadow jumped and placed himself directly between the dragon and the fireball.

"Kaiten! (Rotation)"

A huge dome of energy appeared out of nowhere and collided with the combined attack of the Dragon Slayers. For a moment it looked like the dome would collapse, but in the end it prevailed and shattered the ball of fire and iron, scattering it. Some of the fire ball's fragments slammed in nearby buildings, damaging them heavily, but this went by unnoticed at the moment, since the Fairy Tail members were surprised about the appearance of yet another unknown person.

The person, apparently a young man, used the momentum of his attack to grab onto one of the ink dragon's legs before he fell down. He had long brown hair that covered his entire back. On his forehead was the same metal plate that the other Konoha ninja wore, but the rest of his attire was quite different. Instead of dark clothes or one of the flak jackets, he wore loose wide robes which fluttered because of the wind caused by the dragon's flight.

"They're getting away! We have to go after them!" Gazille shouted while already running after them. The rest of the group followed and Natsu had soon caught up with the Iron Dragon Slayer while the rest of them were a little farther behind. Lucy and Juvia simply weren't fast runners, and Gray was still recovering from Natsu's punches. Mirajane had opted to stay behind and wait for her brother to awaken. Besides, she wouldn't be of any help. The best thing she could do for now was help Elfman and inform Master Makarov.

While the Konoha shinobi hunt went on, Natsu grew frustrated. He just couldn't catch up! Then an idea came to his mind. How could he have been so stupid?

"Happy! Let's go!" The pink haired mage shouted to the blue cat, who had been sitting on Lucy's shoulder till now.

"Aye!" Happy replied, jumping into the air and using his magic to grow two wings. With his newfound speed he rushed to Natsu and picked him up, carrying him into the air towards their escaping enemies.

**XxBreakxX**

"Man, that was a close one. It would have been troublesome if that attack had hit us. Thanks again, Neji."

"Don't mention it. You should be more careful next time, I'm not so sure that all of you would have managed to get away if the dragon had been hit."

The last member of the scouting team was none other than the Hyuuga prodigy and youngest jonin of his generation, Hyuga Neji. It had taken him a little longer to find his teammates, but thanks to his Byakugan, it had been easy once he had been near the city. The four shinobi were currently heading for the outskirts of Magnolia to pick up Naruto and to return to Konoha afterwards. Sai's ink dragon would still hold out for a while, but it was a constant drain on the former ROOT agent's reserves.

"I hope Naruto-san is alright. If he managed to hurt himself again, Sakura-san will probably pound him before healing him. Or heal him so that she can pound him without holding back." Sai said with his ever present grin. This time it even wasn't completely fake, Sakura's and Naruto's antics were quite amusing from time to time.

Shikamaru was tense. "We have to be careful. At the moment Naruto is probably still fighting Erza Scarlet, and it wouldn't be wise to get in a battle between two fighters of such a skill level."

"I think we also have another problem." Neji added, his Byakugan once again active. "The pink haired mage is following us. It appears that he's using some kind of animal summon to fly."

And indeed, behind the ink dragon Happy and Natsu were slowly catching up with them. For the moment the shinobi were still safe from fireballs since they were far enough ahead, but it wouldn't stay like this forever, especially since they had to land to pick up Naruto.

The dragon reached the fields before the city, and shortly afterwards Natsu and the others too. However, none of them was prepared for what they saw there. The entire field was filled with craters. Trees had been uprooted and broken.

In the distance, illuminated by the setting sun, two unmoving figures stood. No one could clearly tell who was who, but all of them hurried up when one of the two fighters collapsed.

The fight was over.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**REPOST FROM SIR GODOT**


	4. Scarlet Fairy, Crimson Fox

**XxChapter** **4: Scarlet Fairy, Crimson Fox****xX**

"Let's go wild!" The Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tailed Fox shouted as he charged the scarlet haired mage.

Erza was slightly taken aback by her opponent's reckless charge, considering that he was unarmed. However, Erza was not an S-Class Mage for nothing, and immediately raised her double-edged sword and also charged at her opponent. With strength that betrayed her build, she brought the heavy weapon down, intending to cut the Konoha shinobi across his chest. A smirk appeared on Naruto's face. The blonde ninja raised his left hand and punched towards the incoming blade; a move Erza had not anticipated.

A thought shot through her head. _"Is he planning to sacrifice his arm to get an attack in?"_

Despite the fact that her sword would possibly cripple "Maelstrom" hand, Erza didn't change her weapons course. She had expected a trick, but certainly not that she hit SOMETHING that felt like solid steel a few inches away from the blonde's hand. Her sword bounced off harmlessly and the scarlet haired mage only narrowly dodged a punch from Naruto's right fist, or at least she thought so. Just like his left hand, there seemed to be an invisible force a few inches around the right hand. It felt like Elfman had just hit her with a transformed arm, no, even stronger than that! Suppressing a painful gasp, Erza was sent backwards. The attack apparently hadn't fully hit her since she had already started to jump backwards, but it still hurt like hell.

"_Is that his magic? If he can extend the range of this force field of his I'll have to resort to long rage weapons. I can't risk to get hit by one of these fists directly; I probably won't be able to stand afterwards."_

Erza ignored the pain in her stomach and the dent in her armor. She eyed her opponent carefully, who hadn't capitalized on the opening his attack had created. Brown eyes met red-rimmed golden eyes. Was he using eye-magic? His eyes were definitely not normal, but her artificial right eye couldn't detect any form of visual magic aiming at her.

"You know, if all we do is keep staring at each other, we won't get anywhere. Not that I mind the view, it's just that I would prefer to get something to eat and then return home instead of fighting you."

A small smile appeared on Naruto's face as he spoke up. In the last year he had learned to be less of an idiot (Fukusaku had literally pounded manners into him), and it had paid off. He rarely lost his cool in battles any more, but unfortunately the toads had been unable to cure his innate knuckle-headedness. In short, Naruto could be a smooth talker if he wanted to but his natural thickness prevented him from noticing the effect it had on some parts of Konoha's female population.

"Look, I know you want to capture me; that hobo-guy wanted that as well, and I don't want to hurt you as well. It's bad enough I had no other choice but to destroy his arm, but you have to understand: the people of Konoha trust in me to return to them. I can't let them down." Naruto continued.

"You could just give up. And why should I care what the people of Konoha think? If your mages lose their will to fight once their strongest fighter is down, it's all the better for us. I have encountered many dark guilds in my career, and none of them were up to any good. What should make you different?" Erza asked while she gathered her magical energy. Soon she would be able to pull out one of her stronger armors with her magic which would hopefully even the field.

Naruto shook his head. "You got a wrong image of Konoha. We're not really a guild, though we do have a system resembling one. We're a village. Konohagakure no Sato, The Village Hidden in the Leaves."

"And you expect me to believe that a village just appears out of nowhere with a small army of mages with no evil intentions?" Erza's eyes narrowed. "For all I know you could be planning to overthrow the Council."

Naruto was close to ripping out his hair in frustration, a feat he would probably have easily accomplished with the strength of his Sage Mode. "Argh, listen to me goddammit! We. Are. Not. Evil. I just can't reveal sensitive information about Konoha like this, the fact that I told you that it's a village was probably too much already! I didn't even mean to hurt that hobo-guy so badly, I only wanted to seal his magic temporarily, not permanently!"

The air around Erza began to ripple as she called on her Ex-Quip magic. "Don't worry; you'll have a lot of time to explain things to me thoroughly once I've captured you!"

Naruto's eyes widened as Erza's armor began to change. Her normal attire vanished and was replaced by a black armor resembling a bat. The scarlet haired sorceress even grew a pair of wings to match the outfit. The sword in her hand changed as well. Instead of the double-edged sword from earlier Erza now wielded a black claymore almost as large as her.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Erza Scarlet, the strongest female mage of Fairy Tail, and this is one of my 100 armors, Kureha no Yoroi (Dark Wing Armor). This armor increases my destructive powers. I don't know the secret of your strength, but I think with this armor I'll be able to match it."

"100 armors? That's certainly impressive… And I think I should introduce myself as well." Settling into another stance of the "Kawazu Kumite", Naruto spoke again. "I'm the Toad Sage of Myobokuzan and the strongest fighter of Konohagakure! Uzumaki Naruto's the name!"

"Now that the formalities are over…" Erza replied calmly while crouching down. "I'll defeat you!"

Erza crouched down even further and then used her legs to catapult herself at Naruto. Her black wings spread and carried her through the air to her target. Naruto, surprised by the sudden attack, immediately raised his fists in a protective manner to intercept the sword.

Once again blade and fist collided, but this time Naruto was unable to simply bat it away. In fact, the sword was slowly cutting through the natural energy gathered around his fists!

"_Damnit, that's some serious power she has behind this attack! I've got no choice; I'll have to pull back."_

With a final push, Naruto managed to separate from the demonic looking woman without getting skewered. To make things worse, his Sage Mode was fading away.

"_I shouldn't have talked with her so long. That's what I get for being such a rookie." _Naruto thought bitterly.

The change of his eyes didn't go unnoticed by his opponent. With a calculating look, Erza watched how the eyes of the blonde maelstrom changed from their golden form to an azure blue. Combined with his golden locks he looked quite attractive. Unfortunately for Naruto, Erza was a pro and not that easily distracted from a battle. The scarlet fairy wasted no time, and immediately charged again, this time from above. When she came down again fast enough to put many ninja to shame, the strongest female of Fairy Tail noticed that her opponent was no longer taking her attacks head-on and instead dodged with a back flip. A grin appeared on her face.

"I see… So that ridiculous strength of yours is tied to your eyes. Now that they have returned to normal, you can no longer challenge me in a contest of pure strength."

The blond boy chuckled. "I guess you're right. But don't worry; I'm used to dealing with women strong enough to knock me through several buildings with a single punch. I'll just have to change tactics a bit, and I already know the perfect way to start things off."

He brought his hands together and formed a very familiar handsign.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! (Shadow Clone)"

The moment he uttered these words, smoke enveloped the area and Erza was immediately on guard; but nothing could have prepared her for the sight before her. She was surrounded by what had to be at least 200 of the blonde mages, and her right eye told her that those were no illusion.

"This is one of my trademark moves, since no one else besides me has enough chakra to summon this many clones. That Gildarts guy, however, crushed my clones without breaking a sweat, so… Let's see how you'll do!"

"YOSHA!" With an enthusiastic battle cry, the clones charged the armored mage with the intent to take her down.

The clones literally flooded the scarlet haired sorceress. Individually they were rather weak how Erza quickly noticed as only a single strike was needed to disperse them, but the sheer number and their agility was something else. Not to mention that their teamwork was top notch. She saw this when two of them tried to hit her with a strange swirling ball of energy. As she saw just how much damage this tiny ball could inflict, she got even more cautious. Soon enough, Erza realized that her current armor wouldn't help her in this situation, her arms and upper body were already heavily covered by bruises.

"Kanso: Tenrin no Yoroi! (Requip: Heaven's Wheel Armor)"

With a flash of light, Erza's armor changed once again. Naruto wasn't impressed by the new armor. The several dozens sword flating around her? Now that was certainly more impressive.

"_I'm glad I managed to get this fixed…"_ Erza thought before she began to use her swords to tear through the ranks of the Narutos like a hot knife through butter.

"Tenrin: Blumenblatt!"

The blades around Erza began to spin in a circular manner, cutting the remaining Narutos cleanly in half. Now there was only one Naruto remaining: the original.

"Wow, that was just as fast as that Gildarts guy… You really are an S-Class Mage, huh? You even dodged the Rasengan (Spiral Sphere)! That attack managed to defeat the hobo-guy after all… Well, it's not like I expected the CLONES to defeat you, but now I have an idea how I can fight you."

Naruto pulled a simple kunai out of his weapons pouch. Erza raised an eyebrow. Was he really planning to challenge her with this puny knife? It was almost an insult. Naruto started to grin when suddenly the blade of the kunai began to grow, enveloped in a slight blue/green light. Wind natured chakra, the sharpest blade Naruto could create.

"Let's see whose blade is sharper, 'Titania'!" He challenged the scarlet haired mage.

"Fine, 'Mealstrom'. I'll show you how foolish it is to challenge me with a sword." Erza replied coolly.

For a moment, neither of the two moved. Then they charged again. Naruto knew he had to be careful. His skill with a sword was mediocre at best, and his opponent specialized in them. However, he was sure he had the sharper weapon. Using his trained ninja reflexes, Naruto narrowly escaped the incoming blades and managed to get close enough to his opponent to swing his kunai at her. The blades met and Erza's eyes widened. The puny little knife was cutting through her sword like it wasn't even there! Having no time to dodge, Erza suffered a blow to her midsection. It was only due to luck (?) that her opponent's sword only cut her armor and not her stomach. However, her armor was useless now.

"Damn it… Just what kind of blade is that?" She asked out loud.

Naruto gave her a wide grin, apparently not caring that they were in a battle of life and death. "Sorry, trade secret. I'm afraid as long as you don't have something stronger than that armor, I'll cut all of your weapons with this."

"Something stronger, huh? Kanso: Kongo no Yoroi! (Requip: Adamantine Armor)"

Once again Erza's outfit changed. The countless blades disappeared and now the scarlet haired sorceress was wearing a silver looking armor that covered her entire body. In her hand was a large claymore, but despite the weapon's size she wielded it with one hand. "This armor has the strongest defensive powers of all my armors… Let's see what is stronger: your blade or my shield."

Naruto sighed heavily. "Great, just my luck to run into an opponent who has a solution for every trick I come up with…"

The Toad Sage narrowed his eyes. He had to hurry; Shikamaru wouldn't be able to hold out forever.

"_I'll probably have to use__ THAT __jutsu on her, just like I did on Gildarts… Focus Naruto, you have to do this! Just aim for a non-vital area, and don't use too much spin, not like last time. It's bad enough that I crippled that Gildarts guy's arm permanently. I don't want to do that again."_

With a handsign Naruto summoned a new batch of clones wielding kunai charged with wind chakra to distract his opponent. The plan worked, Erza was distracted. Her new armor wasn't built for mobility, and it really did block most of the damage. Too bad the Rasengan was made to bypass any kind of defense…

"_Now!"_

Naruto rushed forward while in his right hand a Rasengan began to form. He was almost there. She wouldn't be able to dodge it from this short distance, and hopefully it wouldn't hurt her too bad. Hopefully…

This was it. Naruto jumped from his hiding spot among the clones and aimed at Erza's body. The scarlet haired mage turned around, seeing the incoming attack. Her eyes widened when she saw just what attack was about to hit her.

The attack connected, and afterwards, silence fell over the battle field.

For a while, Erza didn't even dare to breath. She could see it. A few inches from her face hovered the spiraling ball she had seen before. The attack that had claimed Gildarts' arm. The attack that should have destroyed her magic forever.

So… why? Why hadn't Naruto finished her off? Why was it her sword that was buried in his stomach?!

"Why…?" It was all the scarlet haired sorceress could ask. She slowly raised her head to meet Naruto's gaze. She would never forget what she saw.

Naruto's eyes, these clear, blue eyes looked at her with such warmth she almost lost the grip on her weapon. A sad smile slowly formed on the blonde's face as a lonely tear ran down from his right eye, mingling with the blood that dripped out of his mouth.

"Why? I should ask you the same." He coughed a little, causing even more blood to erupt from his wounds. Yet he never broke the eye contact.

"I'm a shinobi who refused to give up on his emotions in exchange for strength… And now it's these emotions that stop me from destroying your magic forever." Now the expression in his eyes changed to something that almost looked like… despair?

"Why? Why do you look so much like her?! The same scarlet hair, the same strength reflected in your eyes… I just can't hurt you! I can't kill my heart!"

Tears were flowing freely now. Erza was stunned. This man… there was not an ounce of evil in his soul. Had it really taken her so long to realize this, or had she simply not wanted to see it? It was too much for her. Her fighting spirit was broken, not by weapons or magic, but by the sincerity she had seen in her opponent's eyes. He was unable to harm her just because she resembled someone he once knew? The Titania slowly stumbled backwards, her sword freeing itself from Naruto's body with a sickening, squelching sound. Although his head slumped down, Naruto remained standing, refusing to fall. His left hand immediately put pressure on the wound while his right hand dispersed the Rasengan which he would no longer use on his opponent.

"_Heh, that's so like me… I blindly stumble into something and create a huge mess for me and my friends… Normally everything turns out just fine, but this time? I'm not so sure…"_ Naruto thought, feeling strangely peaceful. The blonde warrior raised his head once more and looked at the armored woman in front of him.

It was kind of poetic. Two warriors fighting before the setting sun, both of them representing their different beliefs.

It was the woman who broke the silence which had fallen upon them.

"I admit that I have misjudged you, shinobi of Konoha. I thought that those who refuse to obey the rules for guilds were evil… I should have known better than to see everything as black and white, but still, I cannot let you leave like this. You and your friends are a wild card, an unknown factor. If you're truly not evil, you won't have to fear anything."

For the first time since the fight had started Erza's eyes showed something else besides determination and the shock from earlier.

It was warmth. "So please, just surrender and come with me. You're heavily injured and need medical attention. I'm sure you know that you can no longer win and I don't wish to harm someone as sincere as you."

For a moment Naruto just stared at the armor-clad woman. Apparently she really wanted to solve things without any further conflict and she even believed him that he and his friends were not evil. The blond Jinchuriki chuckled a little.

"You have a strong heart… Accepting others and admitting your own flaws is not an easy task. I respect that. However…"

Suddenly Naruto's tone changed. The melancholy in his eyes vanished and was replaced by something forged through countless battles. An unbreakable will. His eyes flashed red for only a fracture of a moment and Erza was not sure if she had only imagined it. She immediately grabbed her sword tighter and got into a battle stance. Was he really planning to continue this fight? The S-Class Mage's eyes widened when she saw how his wounds began to literally steam, closing up before her eyes.

"_What kind of magic is this?! I've never heard of such an advanced regeneration magic before!"_

A roar diverted the attention of both fighters. A large black and white dragon was heading towards them, a certain pink-haired mage hot on its tail. Naruto smirked. It looked like it was time to hit the road. Once again he brought his hands together in the ram seal, summoning a huge amount of chakra. A confident grin appeared on his face.

"It looks like we'll have to continue our battle another time, Erza Scarlet. While I'm impressed by your abilities and devotion to protect the peace of these lands, I can't allow myself to be captured. So… see ya!"

And then Naruto collapsed on the ground.

The fight was over.

**XxBreakxX**

The entire group had been alarmed when they saw one of the fighters fall. Neji immediately activated his Byakugan, only to confirm their suspicions. It was Naruto who had collapsed.

"Damn it, I shouldn't have sent him to fight a woman… He doesn't like hitting them." Shikamaru muttered under his breath. "Sai, can you get us close enough to snatch Naruto and escape afterwards without getting caught?"

Sai, who was by now sweating a little, grimaced slightly. "I'm not sure Shikamaru-san, this dragon isn't normally designed for such tasks, and something seems strange about Naruto, I can detect a huge amount of chakra from the area up ahead."

"Is it the Kyubi?" Shikamaru asked, his voice only carrying a slight trace of anxiety.

"Negative. My Byakugan detects no anomalies with Naruto-san's chakra system." Neji stated, using his famous kekkei genkai to analyze the current situation.

As the dragon quickly approached the scene of the battle, Yamato had an idea what was happening. "Neji, are Naruto's hands touching the ground?" He asked urgently. When the Hyuga nodded in confirmation, the former ANBU grinned. "I see, so that's what he's planning. Sai, change of plans, get us to Konoha now. Naruto will take another route."

Sai merely followed Yamato's orders, not doubting for a single moment that his blonde teammate would be able to escape the mages if he wanted to. Only Neji remained clueless about how Naruto wanted to return to Konoha on his own.

"Yamato-san, what exactly are you talking about? What other route could Naruto-san possibly take?"

Shikamaru smirked. It had been easy for him to connect the dots. "Let's just say that Naruto picked up some tricks while training with the toads."

**XxBreakxX**

The flying cat and the Fire Dragon Slayer raced after the dragon as fast as they could. Much to Natsu's dismay however, they were only able to keep up with its speed, keeping them separated by some distance. The pink haired mage's eyes hardened when he saw the destruction before him. The outskirts of Magnolia were completely destroyed, trees had been uprooted and stones had been smashed. In the distance he saw two silhouettes facing off against each other, but it was too far away to determine who was who, not to mention that the gigantic ink dragon was taking up quite a lot of Natsu's field of vision. Even then, Natsu didn't miss it when one of the two fighters collapsed and fell to the ground.

"Happy, hurry up! Even if it's Erza that won, she can't possibly be unhurt! Hurry!"

"Aye!" Came the determined reply of the magical animal.

Little did they know that what expected them at the center of battle was something neither of them would ever forget.

**XxBreakxX**

"_What is this pressure? The moment he fell over, his magical energy spiked unlike anything I've felt in our fight so far!"_

Erza's mind was racing. What was happening to the blonde man? Was he trying a suicide spell so he wouldn't get captured? Erza quickly discarded this thought, killing himself wasn't something a man like Naruto would do; she had realized this in their fight. The scarlet haired mage remained cautious, and didn't approach her fallen opponent. Nevertheless, the grip on her weapon tightened.

The fallen Naruto once again raised his head, his hands apparently the only thing keeping him from completely hitting the ground. The moment their gazes met however, Erza realized that Naruto was by far not at his ropes end. He gave her a confident smile, his eyes once again a shining blue color. Had she only imagined the red slitted eyes? No, there was no time for musing over things like that. The strange ink dragon was approaching, and by now Erza could easily identify one of the passengers as Naruto's comrade. Apparently Fairy Tail was not the only one who sent reinforcements. The strongest female of Fairy Tail prepared to attack the incoming dragon, but she was surprised to see the dragon change its course away from the battle scene. Had they decided to abandon their comrade?

"Heh, looks like they figured it out. I guess with Yamato and Shikamaru that's no surprise."

Erza's attention returned to the blonde shinobi in front of her. The armor clad mage's eyes widened when she saw a series of strange symbols spreading out from Naruto's hands. Where were they coming from, and what was this color?

"Don't tell me!" Erza exclaimed. "Your blood?! You're using blood magic?!" The mind of the scarlet haired beauty was immediately alert. Nothing good could come from blood magic.

"You could say so… The blood's only a catalyst though; the technique itself is something different. Anyway, I gotta go, so see ya!"

The symbols had by now formed a circle around the blonde and began to glow with an eerie light. Erza's body reacted on its own when she realized that his magic would start at any moment now.

"Stop it!" She shouted, sprinting towards the circle. Naruto's eyes widened in both surprise and shock. This wasn't good; he had to stop her somehow!

"No! You can't step into the summoning circle! You have to…"

But the rest of his words were lost when Erza did just that. For a short moment time seemed like it had been frozen and none of the two warriors moved even a fraction of an inch. The last thing Erza Scarlet, S-Class Mage of Fairy Tail remembered, was an incredibly strong sensation of pulling. For a moment she thought she heard Natsu's voice calling out to her.

Then the darkness claimed her.

**XxBreakxX**

"ERZAAAAAAA!"

Natsu screamed in despair as he saw how his sister figure was enveloped in a strange light before she vanished from his sight. Happy and Natsu reached the place where Erza and her opponent had stood only a few seconds too late. She was gone.

"Damn it! What the hell happened here?!" Natsu shouted angrily, looking for any traces the blonde haired guy might have left behind.

"Natsu!" The Fire Dragon Slayer didn't even turn around when Lucy called his name and arrived together with Gray, Gazille and Juvia. The blonde Celestial Spirit Mage noticed her friend's distress, and immediately connected the dots.

"Where's Erza, Natsu? What happened here?" Lucy inquired carefully. She didn't want to upset Natsu any further.

"I don't know! I didn't get here in time; the last thing I saw is how Erza rushed at her opponent who was already on his knees! But then he used some kind of magic and the two of them just vanished!" The pink-haired mage ranted.

"And the rest of the Konoha mages are gone too… They must have known what that 'Maelstrom' guy was planning. Now that I think about it… Perhaps they had planned this all along." Gray said while resting his head on his right hand, as if the thinking pose would help him with his deductions.

"What do you mean, Gray-sama?" Juvia asked, not so sure what her crush was talking about.

The Ice Mage started to explain his theories. "Think about it. The two of them marched into the city and spoke to Elfman and Mirajane. To me it looks like they WANTED to get noticed by us. When reinforcements arrive, Erza rushed after the stronger opponent. And just when we capture the other one, he is rescued. The timing is really odd. Either they're really lucky, or it was just a plan to gauge or strength."

At this point, Gazille interrupted Gray. "But why would they be after Erza? And if they wanted to capture a strong mage, why didn't that 'Maelstrom' guy capture Gildarts when they fought?"

"Perhaps he was too strong to be captured… Gildarts DID say that he and the Konoha mage were pretty even when they fought… But wouldn't that also mean that the shadow user was lying all along?" Lucy asked.

Gray was once again in deep thought. "We can't discard the possibility that he lied to catch us off guard. If he had told us that their plan was to capture Erza, we would have tried to help her. No, I think he was buying time for his buddy to take Erza as a hostage."

"Erza as a hostage…?" Natsu said quietly. He had been really quiet throughout the entire discussion, visibly shaken up to see one of his closest friends get taken away like that. Especially since she was one of the strongest persons Natsu knew.

"Taking Erza hostage… Konoha might be planning to weaken us so they don't have to fear us getting in their way." Gray finally concluded. With a serious tone he continued. "We have to report this to the Master. I'm afraid we'll have to prepare for a war very soon."

The mood suddenly got a lot darker. All of them knew that they would meet the mysterious mages of Konoha again, but the next time would be a lot more dangerous and bloodier for both sides.

**XxBreakxX**

"Ugh…"

Slowly, Erza opened her eyes. What had happened? Where was she? The last thing she remembered was… Erza shot up and immediately regretted doing so. Her whole body was aching, a testament to the battle she had been through. The mage of Fairy Tail carefully looked around. She seemed to be in some sort of cave, and the inhabitants had to be really small if the kitchen she could see was any indication.

"Ah, you're finally awake. I'll have to tell Naruto-chan that he can visit you now."

Erza whipped her head around and saw one of the strangest creatures she had ever seen – a small, very old looking and TALKING toad with a white goatee and a black cloak around his shoulders. All seriousness was forgotten and Erza simply stared at the odd sight before her with a open mouth.

"Wh-wh-what the hell are you?!" She finally brought out.

The toad seemed a little angry suddenly. "I'm a 'who', thank you very much, and my name is Fukusaku, one of the elder toads at Myobokuzan."

"Myobokuzan…?" Erza repeated, confused. She had never heard of such a mountain anywhere on the entire continent, and yet the name sounded somewhat familiar. Then it hit her.

"That Naruto guy! He said he was the Toad Sage of Myobokuzan!" She exclaimed loudly. The elder toad chuckled a little.

"Yes, yes, little Naruto-chan was finally able to pick up the title of 'Sage' after Jiraiya-chan's tragic passing… But enough of that, I think it's time for you to get something to eat, right?"

And so Erza's adventures on Mount Myobokuzan began.

**XxBreakxX**

"Is everything proceeding as planned?" Asked a shadowy figure wearing an orange mask with a swirl pattern.

"Yes. I managed to infiltrate the Council successfully. They haven't even noticed yet that one of them has been replaced by me." Replied another voice. Yellow eyes glowed in the darkness of the meeting place.

"And what about your mission, Sasuke?" The mask wearing man asked the last of their little group. It was a young man with an emotionless yet handsome face. His black hair framed his pale face, matching his equally black eyes.

"Hn. I spread further rumors about Konoha throughout the cities by impersonating their leading members. Such a trivial task is not worthy of me, don't dare to order me again, Madara."

The man called Madara chuckled. "Now, now, Sasuke, no need to be so grumpy. Just so you know; I finished my little task as well. Soon we'll be able to open a portal to the Elemental Nations again, using my eternal Mangekyo Sharingan's 'Kamui' and the magic of our little friend here…"

Insane laughter could be heard throughout the entire cave the meeting was taking place in. It was so loud it caused another person residing in this cave to wake up. His form was bloody and beaten, dried blood cracking when he opened his eyes.

"I… failed."

Mystogan could only mutter this one sentence before unconsciousness claimed him once again.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**REPOST OF SIR GODOT**


	5. The Calm Before the Storm

**XxChapter 5: The Calm Before the StormxX**

"I see… This is indeed very concerning news."

The entire guild of Fairy Tail was completely silent as the members listened to Makarov. Everybody had been highly alert when an exhausted looking Mirajane had entered the building, along with a barely conscious Elfman. Of course they had been concerned before that already. Well, concerned wasn't the right word. In the beginning, the mages had only been curious. After all, with mages like Gildarts among their ranks, it wasn't uncommon to see a few buildings getting busted now and then. But as the noise hadn't shown any signs of stopping soon, Natsu and his friends had left to see if everything was alright.

Nothing had been alright.

No one had expected something like this. The elusive dark guild "Konoha"… Why had they suddenly appeared in the city? A fight had been inevitable, and now something had happened that no one could have expected.

Erza, one of Fairy Tail's S-Class mages was… gone. No one knew where she was now. Only one thing was clear: it was all the doing of Konoha.

As silence befell the room, it was Gray who spoke up to break it. "Master… What are we gonna do now? Like I said, it might be possible that Konoha is planning to take out the high ranking mages from the guilds to weaken us."

When Makarov didn't answer immediately, but instead closed his eyes and sighed heavily, Natsu got angry. No, he got even angrier than he already was. Erza was like a sister to him, and to see her getting kidnapped like this… He hated it. He hated feeling so powerless. It reminded him too much of the entire Jellal situation.

"Jii-chan, aren't you gonna do anything? Let's form a search party! We gotta find Erza, and then I'll give that Maelstrom guy the beating he deserves!"

Before the old master could even respond to Natsu's rant, the door burst open and a very exhausted looking Freed stormed into the main hall. It was rare to see the normally calm mage like this, so it was no wonder that some members voiced their concern, while Freed was still trying to catch his breath.

"Hey Freed, what happened? You look like you've seen a ghost." Levy asked, true concern clearly audible in her voice.

The enchantment using mage looked at her, his eyes wide and his face pale. Finally, he managed to regain enough breath to tell the others just what had him so spooked.

"Master Makarov, a messenger from the magic council just arrived! Quatro Kerberos has been wiped out!"

In a flash, the old master's eyes snapped open at Fried with an intensity that made everyone in the room freeze.

"What did you just say?" Makarov's voice was calm, but every mage worth his salt could just FEEL how angry the Master was. His magic was rising and almost suffocating some members.

"I-I just heard it from the messenger at the city gates." Freed continued. "According to some witnesses, the entire guild was attacked by only one man. He destroyed a large part of the city and mercilessly attacked the mages. In the end… this one man killed forty percent of Quatro Kerberos and left the rest heavily injured. It is still unclear if Master Goldmine will survive his wounds."

The silence from earlier seemed like infernal noise compared to the lack of sound that now filled the guild. Many of the mages could not believe what they had just heard. Bit by bit, whispers started to spread through the room.

"One man alone?" "He killed so many people…?" "Who could do such a thing?"

As Makarov spoke up again, the whispers ceased. "Freed…" The old mage began, his anger barely subdued. "Who did this?"

"… They didn't know the mage, but he left a message. Black flames which the mages of the magic council could not extinguish burned a message into the ground where the guild once stood."

With the next sentence, pandemonium broke loose.

"It was the symbol of a leaf. It was Konoha."

Immediately, angry shouts erupted from every corner of the guild. This was an outrage! Konoha had openly attacked two of the strongest guilds of the country. This could only mean one thing.

"Crippling Gildarts, kidnapping Erza, murdering our friends… this has gone too far. This is no longer hostile behavior; this is a declaration of war!" The barely contained anger of the Master burst forth with a power they had only seen in the battle against the Phantom Lord Guild.

"Freed! Is that messenger still here? I have a message for him!" Makarov shouted, his eyes full of righteous fury.

"Actually, I'm right here. Excuse me, but your friend ran off so fast that I could barely keep up."

Everyone immediately turned towards the door, where an unknown man stood. His clothes, however, were easily recognizable as the uniform of a servant of the magic council. The shoulder-length, ash-blonde hair was slightly welled and framed the quite handsome face of the man who had just entered the guild.

"Hm? Who's this guy?" Natsu asked, his confusion momentarily replacing his anger at Konoha.

"Idiot, it's a servant of the magic council! Look at his uniform!" Lucy reprimanded her friend.

The man walked towards Makarov and knelt down before him, his head held low.

"Master Makarov, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Levant von Schweitzer, and as you can see I am an official messenger of the magic council. As you've certainly heard by now, Quatro Kerberos has been annihilated. As such, the magic council immediately held an emergency meeting to discuss the next step we should take against Konoha."

Levant raised his head and looked the master straight into his eyes. "By decree of the magic council, Konoha is officially classified as a Dark Guild of S-Class strength, and the entire guild of Fairy Tail is hereby ordered to join forces with both Blue Pegasus and the troops of the magic council under the command of the newly promoted Commander Lahar and gather at the 'Forest of Haze' to completely wipe out the dark guild Konoha."

If earlier it was pandemonium that had erupted, this time the opposite happened. Everyone went completely silent, especially the members of Fairy Tail that had participated in the Oración Seis extermination mission, who went stone-faced. They knew of the dangers when facing a dark guild, and now they mobilized two full guilds as well as an entire battalion of the magic council?

These thoughts of course also went through the head of Master Makarov. He truly wished his guild wouldn't have to be dragged into this, or at least not everyone. Normally, he could at least trust the fact that Mystogan, Gildarts, and Erza were able to take care of themselves. But, with one of them missing, the other badly hurt, and the last one off to god-knows where, how could Makarov send his remaining mages to a mission where they would most likely end up like lambs before a pack of wolves?

But this was not the time to hesitate. Konoha had wronged them, and had to be punished for their sins. With a strong gaze, Makarov looked at the messenger again. "When does the operation start?"

"In two weeks. Therefore, you'll have to prepare to move out soon, since the 'Forest of Haze' is not really close by." Levant replied evenly.

With a nod the master replied simply: "I see. We'll begin the preparations immediately. You may deliver this to the magic council."

Only the nod of Levant von Schweitzer indicated that he had indeed heard what Makarov had said. Without any further ado, the man arose from his kneeling position and walked out of the building, not glancing back even once.

"Stuck-up bastard." Natsu muttered. Lucy and Gray couldn't even reprimand him for his rude assortment since it was undeniably true.

The voices grew loud again, but were immediately quelled by the Master's loud orders. "You've heard it! Every able member of Fairy Tail will participate in the battle against Konoha! Those who are hurt, give your names to Mirajane! Those who are fit will go home and pack for at least two weeks! There will be base, but we don't know what to expect! For the sake of our fallen friends and comrades, let us all stand together and fight!"

At the last word, Makarov raised his staff high into the air, and everyone else followed by thrusting their fists into the air with a loud cheer.

Fairy Tail was going to war, and Konoha would bleed for their cruel deeds.

**XxBreakxX**

Levant von Schweitzer had just left the city and leisurely walked down the road. For someone who had to deliver such an important message, he sure looked like he was in no hurry.

"Well, that was easy." He said to himself apparently.

**"****Yeah, like taking candy from a baby." **A voice suddenly replied, seemingly from out of nowhere. Levant remained completely calm; he didn't even bat an eyelash.

"I never understood this collocation. Why would we want to take the candy?" Levant answered calmly.

**"****You're right. We'd probably take the baby and leave the candy behind. They sure are tasty when the flesh is still so young and soft… Damn, now I'm getting hungry. That Levant guy didn't taste all that good."**

"Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find something on the way back to still our hunger."

As Levant's right eye started to glow with a malicious yellow light, it became all too clear why Zetsu was indeed the infiltration specialist of the Akatsuki.

**XxBreakxX**

The sun was already setting when Neji and the other reconnaissance shinobi finally returned to Konoha. Since Sai's ink dragon was more of a combat than a transportation move, it had collapsed after one hour, which had left the Konoha shinobi with a three hour journey back home. They had traveled mostly in silence, none of them really in the mood for talking; especially after Neji revealing some very disturbing news to them that the Hokage wouldn't be pleased to hear. They always had been able to count on Naruto to lighten the mood, but with him gone for god knew how long…

After their arrival, the four ninja had immediately been escorted to the Hokage's office. None of them looked forward to explain how the situation had developed (read: escalated), and how their most powerful warrior had decided to take a little vacation.

"Come in."

Yamato swallowed nervously when he opened the door, and entered the office with his three companions. He could already see Kakashi's one visible eyebrow rising, wordlessly asking the former ANBU where a certain blonde knucklehead was. This was bad.

"Welcome back you four. While I'm quite interested in your reports concerning our current situation I cannot help but notice that one of your team is missing. Anyone care to enlighten me?" Kakashi asked, apparently calm, but Yamato knew better. He had worked with Kakashi in the ANBU before he had taken his leave, and he remembered how Kakashi had used this tone before. It meant serious business.

The wood-release user nervously started his report, always watching for a reaction on his Hokage's face. Some people were still amazed how many emotions Kakashi could portray with only his right eye being visible. Once Yamato had finished his report, silence reigned the room. Shikamaru, Neji, and Sai had stayed silent during Yamato's speech, but now they looked like they barely held back questions they were dying to ask.

A heavy sigh escaped Kakashi's lips. "I see… This are troubling news indeed. Not only was our existence completely exposed to the outside world, but Naruto resorted to a Reverse Summoning. Then there's the mysterious attack on Quatro Kerberos, to which Neji witnessed the aftermath…"

The Rokudaime Hokage closed his uncovered eye in deep thought. It had been inevitable that their existence would be exposed one day, but it had been truly bad luck that Naruto had started a fight with Fairy Tail's 'Titania'. Now that he had escaped to Myobokuzan, he would need at least two weeks to return. What worried Kakashi most though, was the attack on Quatro Kerberos. There were only two people who could have possibly committed such a horrible act, and both of them bore the name Uchiha. Madara and Sasuke… The only benefit such an act had for them was that the outside world perceived Konoha as an enemy.

Massaging his temples to prevent a headache, Kakashi muttered, "Now I know why Tsunade-sama always drank so much sake in her office… With so much work to do, I can't even enjoy my books anymore!"

The silver haired Hokage addressed his shinobi once again. "Yamato, I want you to go to the ANBU headquarters and send out twice the amount of the usual forest patrols. Shikamaru, you'll inform the council about the newest developments. Neji, I want you to notify the clan heads about this, and inform Hiashi-san about the Hyuuga clan's role as protectors of the civilian population if the need of an evacuation arises. Finally, Sai, please fetch Tsunade-sama for me. She should be working at the hospital at the moment."

With a collective nod, all the gathered ninja but Sai vanished, leaving behind nothing but a swirl of leaves. Kakashi raised his eyebrow and looked the former ROOT agent directly into his eyes. "Is something the matter, Sai?"

For a while, Sai said nothing. Just when Kakashi was about to ask him again, the pale young man spoke. "Hokage-sama… What about Naruto? When will he be back, or rather, how? If he performed a Reverse Summoning, he should be back in our home world, and there is no other toad summoner to summon a toad that could transport him here."

Kakashi chuckled slightly. "You are correct Sai, there is no toad summoner who could perform this task. However, on this fateful day one year ago, not only our people were swallowed by the vortex in the sky. No, it also took most of our buildings and structures with it, and among these things was also a long distance teleportation well used by the toads of Myobokuzan. Naruto is able to use this well to return here. He already did so about ten months ago, when he secretly trained with the Jinchuriki of the Hachibi."

Sai's eyes widened slightly at this revelation. He remembered how Naruto had gone on a training mission for a month and a half shortly after the whole "Anima" dilemma, but to think that he had indeed returned to their own dimension, he could see why it had to be kept a secret.

"If the general population had found out that there was a way of reaching our home world, there would have been a riot. I'm pretty sure a lot of people wouldn't have been able to understand that only a summoner can use such pathways, and the last thing Naruto would need after finally getting accepted is an angry town." Kakashi calmly continued.

"I understand." Sai answered. "Do you known when he'll be back? I'm pretty sure Sakura and the rest of Naruto's friends will want to know about his delayed return as well."

"I can only make a rough estimation, but the shortest time it takes for the well to collect enough energy for a jump like this is one week. It shouldn't take that much longer." Kakashi replied.

Sai nodded a last time to his leader. ,"Thank you, Hokage-sama." With a swirl of leaves, Sai was gone too. For a moment Kakashi looked at the spot his subordinate had been occupying, before ruefully turning his head towards a rather large pile of unfinished paperwork.

"I just know that Tsunade-sama didn't awaken from the coma until I was made Rokudaime, just to escape this hell. I guess Minato-sensei was right. Paperwork IS the bane of all existence…"

Although Konoha was preparing in every way possible for the unknown future, there was no way they could have been prepared for what would happen in two weeks.

**XxBreakxX**

There were not many things that could unsettle Erza Scarlet. As the strongest female mage of Fairy Tail, she had quite a reputation, not to mention that she could make Natsu and Gray shut up with but a glance. However, there's a first time for everything. The existence of speaking animals was not that surprising for Erza, considering that she had known the flying and talking cat Happy since the day of his birth. But this…

Erza couldn't help but feel like she was in a fairytale when she saw the nature on Myobokuzan for the first time. The plants were all several times larger than they normally should be, and not only the plants were oversized. Erza remembered how she had almost attacked a huge toad that had landed in front of her, and the old toad who had introduced himself as Fukusaku. Only the fact that Erza was still wounded, and the surprise when the huge orange toad (he even wore a blue jacket!) started talking, stopped her in her tracks. Thus it took the scarlet haired sorceress a while to notice that the old toad was talking to her.

"Erza-chan. Erza-chan. … Erza-chan!"

The Titania's thoughts immediately stopped thinking about ridiculously large toads, and simply accepted them for now. Only absentmindedly, the scarlet sorceress noted that the toad had adopted a more familiar honorific.

"Eh, yes?"

The old toad chuckled. It wasn't that surprising to see their guest this confused. Many ninja had troubles to grasp the concept of summonings without freaking out.

"I said that now that you've met Gamakichi here, you could accompany him to meet Naruto-chan. I can imagine that you have a lot of questions for him. Oh, and please don't fight. Naruto explained tome what happened, and I can promise you that everything is indeed a really unfortunate misunderstanding."

Erza only nodded. She indeed had many questions for the mysterious Maelstrom, and apparently she would finally get some answers. This didn't mean that she accepted the toad's explanation of everything being a misunderstanding, but since she was in an unknown and potentially hostile environment, she had to play by their rules. The red-haired mage turned to the toad who had been introduced as Gamakichi.

"Please lead the way."

Erza followed the giant toad in silence. She didn't know where her amphibian companion was leading her, but she noticed that the vegetation was getting scarcer and scarcer, until it vanished completely. Instead of flowers and plants, rocks and mountains covered the ground before her. To Erza's great surprise, the toad lead her to one of those mountains. Was there a cave or something like that hidden there? Gamakichi came to a halt and suddenly started shouting, slightly startling the S-Class Mage in the process.

"OI, ANIKI! THE HOT BABE FINALLY WOKE UP! GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE!"

Several things registered in Erza's brain at the same time. One, the toad referred to the Maelstrom as "aniki", his big brother, which seemed quite strange to her, considering that he looked like a human and not like a toad. Second, the toad had called her a "hot babe". She wasn't sure whether she should be flattered or angry, so she settled for both. And lastly…

"'Down here'?" Erza looked up and her eyes went wide. On the very peak of one of the very spiky mountains sat Naruto, balancing on what looked like a quadratic stone board. Thanks to her keen eyesight, she could see how two birds had settled on the young man, who appeared to be in deep meditation. Just how could he balance up there?

"Damn, he doesn't hear me… Oh well, not my problem."

Erza turned her head towards Gamakichi when she heard his muttering. She only grew more confused when the large toad took a deep breath. Her confusion was replaced by astonishment when the jacket wearing amphibian shot a huge ball of water straight at the blonde warrior. A startled cry could be heard soon afterwards, and Erza and Gamakichi (the later one with a gleeful look on his face), watched as Naruto plummeted towards the ground. Very fast. With his head first. Too stunned to react, the scarlet haired mage winced when Naruto's head made contact with the ground, the impact creating a huge dust cloud. The Fairy Tail Mage turned towards her toad companion, who was still looking extremely amused.

"What the hell was that for? He might be seriously hurt after falling down from such heights! We have to help him!"

Gamakichi only looked at her, his amusement never leaving his face. "Nah, don't worry. There's hardly anything that can hurt aniki when he's in that state."

"In that state?" Erza repeated in confusion.

"Hey, Gamakichi, what the hell was that for?"

Erza's head snapped towards the direction of the dust cloud. This voice! But how, no human should be able to withstand such a fall without proper preparations!

The dust finally settled down, and a completely unharmed Naruto walked towards the two newcomers. He was only clad in a pair of orange boxer shorts and Erza noted with a slight blush that the dangerous 'Maelstrom' had quite a nice figure. Erza immediately banished these thoughts and concentrated on his face, which was quite cute in her opinion. Especially with his blonde hair framing his face… damn.

After mentally slapping herself, Erza focused on something that seemed out of place: his eyes. They were no longer the vibrant blue which she had seen at the end of their battle. No, they were once again golden, with rectangular slits and an orange coloring around them.

"_So that's what he meant with 'in this state'. I remember how he stopped my sword with his bare hands. I can see how a fall from such heights without taking damage."_

Concentrating on the approaching blonde, Erza decided to ponder about the young man's abilities at another time.

"Oh, hey there. Glad to see that you're finally awake." Naruto greeted with a smile on his face, and Erza couldn't detect any falsehood in his words. He really WAS glad that she was awake. The blonde warrior didn't wait for Erza to say anything, and just continued to speak. "I was pretty worried when you fainted after the Reverse Summoning, but then again, who IS used to jumping between dimensions?"

Erza froze. Had he really just said that, or had her ears played a trick on her? Erza spoke very calmly, but it was all she could do to stop herself from outright shouting the question she had.

"What do you mean by 'jumping between dimensions'?"

Naruto's happy smile immediately dropped; instead he looked quite nervous now.

"Eh, you see, about that…"

Back at the small house were Erza had first awoken, Fukusaku was enjoying a hot cup of tea with his wife Shima. After taking a sip, the elder toad let out a relieved sigh.

"Ah… Nothing beats a good cup of tea to relax."

His wife nodded in agreement before replying. "I wonder how things will play out with the girl Naruto-chan brought with him. She really looks just like her."

Fukusaku nodded. "Ah, yes. Well, Gamakichi should have brought her to him by now."

Then a sudden cry of "WHAT DO YOU MEAN I'M STUCK HERE?" could be heard all across Myobokuzan. Fukusaku nodded to himself.

"It looks like he just told her, and my, the girl has quite a set of lungs."

"I'll prepare an extra tasty feast for her; it'll help her handle the shock for sure." Shima said with a smile.

The bearded elder toad nodded. "You should do that, oh, and please prepare some bandages." Like on cue, a painful scream echoed across the home of the toads. "It appears that Erza-chan has quite a temper as well."

**XxChapter EndxX**

**REPOST FROM SIR GODOT**


	6. The Darkest Hour

**XxChapter 6: The Darkest HourxX**

The two weeks had gone by quickly. Much too quickly in the opinion of many members of the magic guilds. The air was tense in the united camp of Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, and the army of the Magic Council. While the members of Blue Pegasus and Fairy Tail got along with each other easy enough (if you ignored how Ichiya cried about the abduction of his "honey" Erza), the soldiers of the magic council were pretty much as stuck up as they could get. A situation Natsu wasted no time to comment on.

"Man, I hate those guys. They act so high and mighty all the time, it really pisses me off!"

Natsu's rants were by now mostly ignored by his friends, who sat around a campfire with the Dragon Slayer. It was the last evening before the start of the operation.

"Natsu, just drop it. We get it by now; you've been telling us since we arrived here." Lucy answered with a tired voice. She didn't want to fight against other humans, but it looked like she didn't have a choice in that matter. As the blonde Celestial Spirit Mage looked around, she saw that many guild members looked like they shared her opinion.

Gray, meanwhile, tried to calm both of his friends down. He didn't want anyone to blow up because of the tension that had a firm grip on the camp. "She's right Natsu. We can't waste time to get angry because of the soldiers."

Natsu and Lucy just stared at the ice mage. It was Lucy who answered dryly. "… You certainly didn't waste any time taking off your clothes again."

Gray looked down at himself and had once again to admit that he had taken of his clothes without knowing it. "Shit! I did it again! … Oh well, it's warm tonight, I can sleep like this easily."

Lucy rolled her eyes. She was used to her friends' antics by now, but it didn't mean she didn't want to bang her head against a wall sometimes because of them. As the blonde girl looked around to see who was still awake, her eyes caught sight of two people that sent shivers down her spine.

"Hey guys, do you see those two guys with the black cloaks over there?" She whispered to Natsu and Gray, before all three of them sent unsuspicious glances at the two mentioned figures who were sitting near the tent of the commander of the magic council's army. They couldn't see any defining features due to the cloaks which covered them from head to toe.

Lucy rubbed her arms absentmindedly as if she wanted to warm herself against the chilling presence those two seemed to emit. "Those two are really creepy for some reason. Who are they anyway? They don't belong to Blue Pegasus, but they don't look like soldiers either…"

"I heard that they're specialists of the magic council sent to break the illusion surrounding the forest." A new voice said.

The three turned around to see a familiar sight of long, silver hair. "Mira-san!" Lucy exclaimed, happy to see that the S-Class Mage had finally fully recovered from the battle against Maelstrom and his friend two weeks ago. The exhaustion had been worse than expected due to Mirajane's unstable condition before the fight, yet she had managed to get her back on her feet, fully recovered and ready for battle.

"You mean those guys are support? They look so creepy…" Lucy continued.

Mirajane smiled at her friend. "Yeah, I get this really strange feeling too, but as long as they do their job we shouldn't complain. We need to break this illusion if we want to free Erza."

Everyone at the campfire nodded seriously. They had to free Erza at any cost. Who knows what those Konoha bastards might do to her!

"_Just wait for us, Erza! We're coming to save you!_" Natsu thought, his eyes full of determination.

Night soon fell over the campsite, with the only source of light being the brightly shining moon. Many people looked at it, for sleep wouldn't come to them this night. Who could blame them? A lot of them wished that the next day would never come, but sadly, this wish remained unanswered. The next day would come.

**XxBreakxX**

In Konoha, the situation was just as tense. The scouts had of course noticed the camp outside of the forest, but with their limited numbers, a preemptive strike would be nothing but suicide. In his office at the Hokage Tower, Kakashi was contemplating their next step. As long as the illusions of the forest remained, they were safe. However, if they were to fall they'd face something akin to the Oto/Suna invasion all over again, and there was no guarantee that it would end as well as last time. The Rokudaime Hokage rose from his seat and turned towards the window, looking at the brightly shining moon. Absentmindedly he touched his left eye with his left hand.

"I may have to use this sooner than expected. Sensei… I won't let you down. I'll protect this village just like you and all the Hokage before me did. After all, Naruto can't take over as the Hokage if there's no village left, right?

There was no answer to the man's silent words, and yet he felt like his sensei was there with him.

"Sai!"

With no audible sound the ANBU operative appeared in the Hokage's office, respectfully on his knee.

"You called, Hokage-sama?"

"Give the order to prepare the troops and ANBU. I have a feeling that we'll get a visit soon."

"Understood, Hokage-sama." Without any further ado, the ever-smiling boy vanished. Kakashi simply continued to look at the moon, as if it held the answers to all his questions.

"Naruto… hurry up. Konoha needs you."

Where was Naruto?

**XxBreakxX**

At another place, far, far away from home, two more people were watching the moon as it illuminated the starless sky. The two of them sat side by side on an oversized flower, a comfortable silence accompanying them.

"Hey, Erza-chan…"

"What is it, Naruto?"

"Do you think it will work? I really hope we can convince everybody, but it seems kinda hopeless."

A light chuckle escaped the woman's lips.

"I never expected you to brood like this. It's strange to see you so somber."

The first voice kept silent, but it was clearly visible that the blonde young man was pouting. The crimson haired woman put her left hand on the right shoulder of the man she had called Naruto and squeezed it reassuringly.

"Don't worry. I'm going to help you, remember? That's what friends are for, right?"

These words caused a smile to blossom on the blonde's face. He raised his left hand and put it on the hand of the woman, returning the gesture.

"Yeah, you're right. Thanks, Erza-chan."

The two friends continued to sit on the flower for a while longer. The path before them was a harsh and stony one, but they had promised each other to brave it nonetheless, and neither one of them was a person to go back on their word.

**XxBreakxX**

Everything had its opposite. Like the moon had the sun, for every person wishing for peace while gazing at the moon, there was one who wished for harm while looking at the night sky. In Naruto's and Erza's case it was one Hoshigaki Kisame, the strongest of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. The blue-haired monster of a man stared at the moon with something akin to hunger in his eyes. On his right shoulder rested the hilt of his sword, the mighty Samehada, and that wasn't all. Something else was hanging over the blade of the sword, or rather, someone. The person was tall and had dark skin and appeared to be in pretty bad shape, if the numerous bloody gashes that adorned the person's body were any indication. Yet Kisame ignored the person, his entire focus concentrated on a swirl that was slowly appearing in front of him.

"So the party's finally starting, eh? About time… I was getting bored."

And thus the Monster of Kirigakure departed to lands unknown to almost all shinobi of the Elemental Nations, taking his mysterious 'package' with him.

**XxBreakxX**

"Begin the operation."

The voice of Commander Lahar was cold and harsh as he ordered the two black clad men to start the barrier destruction. The gathered mages all looked tense and nervous. The moment the illusion fell, they would charge through the forest into Konoha. They had been told to take prisoners, but only if the chance arose. It had been coated in nice words, but essentially the magic council wanted the mages to slaughter everyone who bore the mark of Konoha. It was a sickening thought for the mages who had sworn to protect every life, no matter whom it belonged to, but they couldn't refuse the council's orders without being charged for treason. The only ones who had no trouble with this were the soldiers dispatched by the council, but this was no surprise for the gathered mages.

Lucy and her friends looked anxiously at the two men in black, as their hands formed strange signs at blinding speeds before slamming them into the air in front of them. At first nothing happened, and Lucy wondered what they had tried to accomplish with this little stunt. After a few seconds, however, the entire forest before them began to splinter like a broken mirror.

The cracks in the air ran around the entire forest and up into the air, as if a large dome of glass had been placed over the forest and was now breaking.

"It is done." The taller one of the two cloak wearing men said.

Commander Lahar only nodded. "Begin the attack! Let us free the world from Konoha's evil grasp!"

Lahar ignored the cheers of the soldiers and continued to speak. "Mages of Fairy Tail! Remember your role! You will charge through the forest and attack Konoha's stronghold directly while we distract their soldiers! Do not fail us!"

The mages of Fairy Tail didn't look too happy about their mission, but they were indeed the strongest of the three present forces and used to working together. All their discomfort had to be ignored for now.

"CHARGE!"

The war had begun.

**XxBreakxX**

The serenity of the forest was broken by the countless murmurs of the mages that crept through the trees. They were trying as hard as possible to remain quiet, but unlike the shinobi they were trying to attack, they had little experience in such things. Therefore it was quite easy for the ANBU to spot them. The allied mages only noticed that something was wrong when suddenly cries of pain cut through the eerie silence of the forest.

"We're under attack!" A soldier of the magic council shouted just before he was silenced by a well-aimed throwing knife. But these warriors hadn't been chosen for nothing. Only a few moments after the initial surprise, magic barriers flared up and stopped the thrown weapons.

The barrage of kunai stopped, and the silence returned. This time however, it was a tense silence. Then, without making a single sound, the forces of Konoha arrived. They stood on the branches of trees, behind large bushes and sometimes even at the side of the trees without holding to them. Wrapped in black uniforms with white face masks they were a truly imposing sight, especially since they were completely silent. Just like ghosts.

One person was different though. Instead of the black attire everyone seemed to wear he was clad in a green vest and dark blue pants. Brown hair and a strange headgear framed his face, and the mages of Fairy Tail that had been present at the fight in Magnolia City immediately recognized him as one of 'Maelstrom's' companions.

"You!" Natsu exclaimed angrily and attempted to charge through the shields only to be held back by Gray.

"Mages of Fiore!" The man shouted with a commanding voice.

"I am Yamato of Konoha! This was a warning! Withdraw immediately! Any other action will be deemed an act of war and bring the full might of Konoha upon you!"

Yamato's eyes were cold and unforgiving as he stared at the allied mages. Commander Lahar stepped forward to say something, but to everyone's surprise he was interrupted by none other than Makarov. The voice of the old master betrayed the barely controlled fury that he felt.

"You have the audacity to accuse us of an act of war? You, who slaughtered countless of our friends and comrades, does your arrogance know no bounds? Your folly shall end this day, and your entire guild with you!"

Makarov slowly stepped outside of the barrier, everyone close to him either stepping aside on their own or being pushed aside by the pure magic power that began to swirl around the third master of Fairy Tail.

Yamato immediately realized that the old man was up to something. The sixth sense that had been honed by his years of service for the ANBU was screaming at him to get away when he saw how Makarov crossed his arms.

"Take cover!" Was all he shouted to the gathered ANBU, but even with Yamato's timely warning, the result was still devastating.

"Giant Surge."

For everyone and everything in front of the guild master, the world turned white. There was no other way to describe the huge beam of pure light that slammed through the forest trees, evaporating them in its path and finally hitting the gates of Konoha. For a moment, it looked like the sturdy gates would survive the unexpected assault, but after a short moment of struggling, the gates fell as well, along with a sizeable portion of the wall they had been set in.

No one said anything after this display of power. The mages from Fairy Tail were once again reminded just why Makarov was indeed their master. The army of the council was awestruck, humbled by the strength this small old man wielded.

As for the Konoha shinobi… they too were amazed and a little frightened by the power Makarov had displayed.

"This strength… It looked just like the Kyubi's…" Yamato muttered. He remembered only too well how Naruto had unleashed a similar attack on Orochimaru more than one year ago. To see such strength displayed by a human was more than enough to proof that Makarov was at least as strong as any Kage of the Elemental Nations. The Mokuton user was jarred out of his thoughts when he heard the commander of the enemy forces shout new orders to his soldiers.

"The path is clear! Use this chance and advance to Konoha! Everyone, charge!"

Cursing himself for letting his guard down, Yamato and his fellow ANBU soon found themselves being overrun by the mages of Fiore.

"Damn! Don't let them pass! We must protect Konoha at any cost!" Yamato shouted while forming handsigns at a blinding speed. Jumping down from his tree Yamato landed in front of a large group of mages and placed his hands on the ground.

"Mokuton: Jukai Kotan! (Wood Style: Great Forest Creation)"

As soon as the words left his lips, roots began to emerge from the ground. The earth shook and crumbled as large trees freed themselves from their earthen prison, rebuilding the forest that had been destroyed by Makarov's attack in but a moment.

Commander Lahar's eyes widened at this. "So this is how the 'Forest of Haze' came to be… To think that Konoha had such a powerful Wood Alchemy Mage amongst their ranks..."

Yamato's expression was grim. While he had managed to repair the forest, half of the enemy troops had already broken through the first line of Konoha's defense, thus Yamato had only one option to stop the remaining forces. Once again, his hands came together, and this time the technique he used would entrusted the fate of Konoha to his comrades still in the village.

"Mokuton: Jukai Heki (Wood Stlye: Tree Wall Barrier)."

The gigantic trees came alive and shot their branches towards each other, interweaving with each other until they formed a solid wall of thick branches. Some of less fortunate magic users that stood too close to the wall had been attacked by the branches, as if the forest had its own will.

Yamato turned towards Commander Rahal and the rest of his forces.

"No one will get past this wall, neither your troops nor our reinforcements."

The normally calm façade of the bespectacled Lahar turned cold at these words.

"So you willingly sacrificed yourself and your men to stop us? How foolish. It doesn't matter if only half of the troops managed to get inside, after all, Fairy Tail and most of my men made it inside. I doubt that anyone of your pitiful dark guild can stand up to the might that is Master Makarov. The remaining soldiers of my forces and the mages of Blue Pegasus will be more than enough to eliminate you and your subordinates. We will take care of your wood magic afterwards."

Yamato's answer was to settle into a fighting stance.

"Do not underestimate Konoha! You are not the only one who has excellent fighters on their side!"

With battle cries from both sides the forces clashed anew, but at this point no one could have foreseen the outcome of this battle.

**XxBreakxX**

After the confrontation with Yamato and the ANBU, most of the members of Fairy Tail were on their way to the gates that had been destroyed by Makarov only moments ago. The soldiers that had been lucky enough to accompany them before the forest sealed itself were coordinating themselves as well as they could without any way to contact their commander.

"There's the wall! Let's do this guys!"

Natsu's eager shout wasn't filled with its usual excitement. While he was definitely determined to fight, it wasn't just for the thrill of battle. He was here to rescue Erza. He was so focused on his objective that he was caught quite off guard when suddenly; two giants appeared apparently out of nowhere and sent their gigantic fists down on them.

**XxBreaxX**

Kakashi sighed heavily as he surveyed the beginning battle. He hated to admit it, but he had underestimated the mages of Fiona a little. He hadn't expected them to unleash an attack of such a caliber right off the bat. And now the gates were broken and their second line of defense destroyed.

"_At least Yamato managed to reduce their numbers significantly."_ Kakashi thought. _"And by the looks of it positioning the Akimichi clan at the entrance was also a good idea. But we can't let our guard down even one moment. We're outnumbered and low on resources; our enemy has too many advantages for my liking."_

Although no sound was made, Kakashi was not surprised when one of his ANBU guards appeared kneeling on the floor, his head bowed.

"Hokage-sama," The masked man said respectfully. "The preparations are done. We can move out now."

Kakashi nodded. "Very well. It's time to see whether my special training has paid off or not."

With a single movement he discarded his white robes. The outfit he wore under it couldn't give many shinobi back in the Elemental Nations nightmares. The reason for this was because almost no one had lived long enough to describe it when he had worn it back in his days as ANBU agent.

Clad in a black bodysuit and white ANBU armor, the Rokudaime Hokage of Konoha was ready for war.

**XxBreakxX**

Natsu cursed as he ran through the mostly empty streets of Konoha. He had been separated from his friends after the attack from those two freakishly large guys and was all alone now. They hadn't expected someone besides Master Makarov to use Titan magic so well. It wasn't that Natsu minded being separated from the others; he could look out for himself and knew that the others could as well, but without Happy he couldn't get a clear view of the city and thus the places where Erza might be.

"Erzaaaaaa! Where are youuuuu?" Natsu shouted as he ran through the streets, ignoring the occasional explosions around him. His friends were strong; they could deal with these Konoha flunkies for sure!

Natsu was so caught up in his shouting that he almost missed an incoming attack, and only narrowly dodged a powerfully swung staff with a backwards flip. When Natsu landed again, he immediately looked for the attacker and was surprised to find a young boy standing in front of him, firmly holding a black battle staff in his hands.

"I won't let you take even one more step in Konoha, you damn mage! How dare you guys attack our village! I, Konohamaru, future Hokage will drive you out of Konoha with my own hands!"

Natsu narrowed his eyes at the young boy who had introduced himself as "Konohamaru". Both the mage and the ninja had the same eyes; eyes that were burning with determination.

"Listen up squirt," Natsu said, his voice filled with barely restrained anger. "I don't care about what you want to do; I'm here for two things: one, to save Erza, and two, to kick you Konoha bastards' asses for attacking our friends!"

Konohamaru replied just as fiercely. "What do you mean 'attacking your friends', you idiot? You guys are attacking us! We just want to be left alone, but apparently you guys just don't get that! … And who the hell is Erza?"

"Shut up!" Natsu shouted, his expression turning dangerously feral. "It was you guys who wouldn't stop attacking guilds! And that stupid Naruto guy abducted Erza, so where is she?"

Suddenly Konohamaru's staff was only inches away from Natsu's face again as the young shinobi had closed the gap between them in an instant.

"Don't talk about the boss like that! And leave our village alone, damnit!"

Natsu managed to avoid the strike yet again by bending backwards and immediately used the chance to deliver a swift kick to Konohamaru's unprotected torso. In the last moment he shinobi managed to shift his staff in the path of Natsu's kick, blocking the powerful attack. However, Konohamaru didn't expect the leg suddenly to be engulfed by fire, which caused a small explosion between the two fighters and sent Konohamru flying.

"Karyu no Kagitsume. (Fire Dragon's Talons)"

Natsu stood up again and looked for his opponent. The smoke from the explosion and the dust from Konohamaru's impact had created a small smokescreen, something Natsu didn't like one bit. The reason for this became all too clear when suddenly, a strange noise came from somewhere inside the smokescreen. Natsu managed to locate the rough direction where the sound came from, only to see two Konohamaru standing in the clearing dust. Whatever they were holding in their hands, it was the origin of the strange sound and definitely not good.

"Rasengan!" Konohamaru shouted and charged Natsu. The young shinobi would show this stupid mage! He would protect Konoha until Naruto returned home.

As Natsu saw Konohamaru charging at him, he chose that the best way around this technique, which apparently had to be used in closed combat, was to attack from a distance.

"Karyu no Hoko! (Fire Dragon's Roar)"

A huge fireball erupted from Natsu's mouth and headed directly towards Konohamaru and his clone. The shinobi's eyes widened. He couldn't possibly dodge this attack at this distance and due to the Rasengan in his hand he couldn't use any other technique right now. So Konohamaru did the only thing he could think of.

He struck Natsu's fireball with his Rasengan.

A huge explosion shook the area and engulfed both fighters in its deadly embrace.

**XxBreakxX**

"Why meeeee?"

This very desperate, and very girly scream belonged to none other than Lucy Heartfilia, as she ran through a deserted street. Why she was running away? The answer to this question was probably the huge swarm of black bugs that was currently following her, and slowly closing in. Mages she could take. Monsters as well. But an army of horrible insects? No. Fucking. Way.

"'Why?' you ask? This is a very strange question. The answer should be obvious."

Lucy's heart skipped a beat when she suddenly heard a very calm voice coming from all around her. She frantically looked around to find the origin of the voice which continued to speak while the bugs kept… bugging her.

"Why? Because you and your friends attacked our home. My allies and I will not tolerate this."

From the mass of bugs a lone figure emerged. The Celestial Spirit Mage could hardly see his face due to the hooded jacket and high collared shirt, which together with his sunglasses covered almost the entire face of the bug-user.

Lucy swallowed hard. This guy meant serious business, but she couldn't give up before the fight even started. She was a mage of Fairy Tail!

With her confidence renewed, Lucy drew her Celestial Spirit Keys.

**XxBreakxX**

In the midst of Konoha, Team Shadow Gear was busy staying alive. Although they were known for their teamwork it had soon become clear that the Konoha mages had it too. In spades.

"Let's check out the area over there. We should try to catch a little breath." Levy suggested.

Her quite exhausted team members wholeheartedly agreed, and approached the large compound Levy had pointed to. It looked really spacious, almost like a little village on its own, and should provide them with enough cover for the three of them to regain at least some of their energy. However, the moment the three stepped through the gates of the compound, their plans were thwarted by a voice that stopped them dead in their tracks.

"Halt! You filthy mages, how dare you try enter the compound of this noble clan in its absence!"

To Team Shadow Gear's great surprise the voice belonged to a young girl probably not older than Wendy that proceeded to jump in front of them from a nearby rooftop. Long brown hair framed her furious face and pale, pupil-less, that eyes glared at the trio of mages with an intensity that made them a little nervous, despite the fact that she was just one little girl.

"In the name of the Hyuga Clan I cannot let you get away with this insult!" The girl shouted and shifted into a martial arts like combat stance.

"Now, now, calm down little one," Droy said. "We don't want to hurt youuuu!"

The last word turned into a surprised shout when the little girl suddenly launched herself at Droy and began to unleash a flurry of strikes against the plant-user, slowly pushing him back. Unfortunately, Droy made the mistake of underestimating his young opponent, and decided to block one of her strikes with his left arm. After all, how much could it hurt? The answer was: a lot.

"Holy shit, this hurts!" Droy exclaimed, while nursing his now limping left arm.

"Droy!" Jet shouted and rushed towards his friend, his Tenkyaku (God's Leg) magic blazing alive. He tried to kick the girl from behind so she would have to stop her attacks on Droy. To Jet's great shock however, the girl spun around and blocked the kick by bringing both her arms in a cross-guard. While it hadn't worked like planned the brown haired girl still had been forced to stop her attacks.

"How did she know that I was going to attack her…?" Jet muttered incredulously.

The girl meanwhile continued to stare at them with her pupil-less eyes… Eyes that were now surrounded by thick veins.

"Impossible! Is that eye magic? But she's so young!" Levy said in surprise, while taking position next to her two friends. One thing had become crystal clear: they had underestimated the girl.

"My name is Hanabi. Hanabi of the Hyuga Clan." The girl proclaimed and settled into her combat stance again. "And I shall show you why you mages will never take Konoha as long as my clan resides within these walls!"

**XxBreakxX**

The whole street looked like Fairy Tail had used it to hold an impromptu party for three days straight, and considering how those usually ended, it was no surprise that the largest piece of rubble in the street was about as large as a fist. Everything else was… in various places. From one particularly large mountain of said rubble however a voice could be heard.

"Ouch… that hurt a little."

Natsu rose from the remains of various buildings like a phoenix from its own ashes. Well, at least Natsu looked like he had been buried in ashes. Coughing a little the Dragon Slayer looked around. His clothes were dirty and his body a little bruised, but besides that he was still in a fairly good condition.

"That exploding ball thing sure caught me by surprise." Natsu muttered to himself. "Good thing I'm fire-resistant. But where did the brat go?"

Konohmaru definitely had gotten the short end of the stick when his and Natsu's attack had collided. While the pink haired mage was impervious to flames, Konohamaru was not. The young shinobi was badly hurt and half buried under a pile of rubble. The Fire Dragon Slayer winced a little when he saw how badly the unconscious young boy had been hurt. Sure, they were enemies, but Natsu didn't like beating up younger children, no matter the reason. He had only wanted to protect his home, something Natsu could easily relate to. Thus Natsu didn't have to think for long when he freed the young boy and placed him against a still intact wall.

"I'm sorry. I'm sure a medic or someone else will find you."

They had been ordered to eliminate the Konoha mages. But Natsu didn't care. Someone who was willing to fight so fervently for his friends couldn't be that much of a bad guy. Natsu took off without looking back. He had to find Erza before things got worse.

**XxBreakxX**

In another part of Konoha, Hanabi soon was forced to realize that while she might have been able to defeat one of the guys in a one-on-one fight (and only with the element of surprise was well), the girl was an entirely different story. Not only was she far stronger than the other two, but as a team their power was greater than the sum of its parts. Since Hanabi had used up the element of surprise she was no longer getting underestimated. Her Byakugan had helped her to avoid the attacks that kept coming from all sides, but now her energy was running low. Things didn't look good for the daughter of the clan head.

Levy's voice was almost pleading as she spoke. It was really hurting her to see a little girl fighting them with such fervor. "Come on, Hanabi was it? Please give up. We don't want to fight children, let alone hurt them. So please, just surrender."

Hanabi glared at the three mages, the veins around her eyes still bulged.

"Never! On my pride as a member of the Hyuga Clan and Shinobi of Konoha I cannot surrender!"

Levi was confused. "Member of the Hyuga Clan" she could understand, but what did she mean with "shinobi"?

"Shinobi? What do you mea – "

The word using mage never got the chance to finish her sentence, because suddenly a blur appeared in front of her and her friends. With three lighting fast strikes to their midsections, Team Shadow Gear was knocked back and sent to their knees. While their lungs felt like they were on fire, a new voice spoke up.

"You mages truly have no honor. Three grown mages attacking one young girl? Despicable."

The trio slowly raised their heads to get a look at the newcomer. Their bodies felt like lead by now. They had already been exhausted before even entering the compound and fighting the little girl without seriously harming her had not been kind to their energy reserves. And then this guy had popped up, and this one strike he had delivered hurt more than all those attacks the girl had unleashed upon them combined.

Pale eyes burned with cold fury and pierced the very souls of Team Shadow Gear with their intensity. Neji Hyuga had arrived.

"For even daring to strike Hanabi-ojousama, I, Hyuga Neji, shall not let you escape."

"Gatsuga! (Tunneling Fang)"

"Ice Make: Wall!"

With a loud crack, the wall of ice cracked and broke, but it had served its purpose. The two identical looking warriors had been stopped, much to their annoyance.

"Stop hiding behind those stupid walls you bastard!" One of them shouted.

Gray smirked at his opponent's enraged tone. True, he was outnumbered, and his opponents were a perfect team, but they relied too much on their attack power. The brown haired boy actually reminded Gray actually a little of Natsu. Loud, brash and headstrong and not too bright. Oh, and a lot less powerful.

"Sorry, but I don't have the time to play with you and your dog. How about I finish this now?" Gray suggested mockingly. He didn't like playing the cocky bastard, but in this case it helped him to get under his opponent's skin.

And just as Gray had expected it, the beast-like mage could get even angrier.

"What do you mean 'play'? You bastards are too afraid to fight us directly, that why you always hide behind those stupid walls! One clean hit from me and you're finished!"

Kiba was really angry at the moment. He had underestimated the ice-user (after all, who could take someone serious who stripped without noticing it?) and paid for it. Kiba just hoped that no one had seen him when he had jumped into one of those stupid walls face-first…

Gray just kept smirking. "Is that so? Well, you're welcome to try."

"That I will you damn icicle! Take that!" Kiba shouted.

To Gray's surprise the other teen produced a ball like object from his pockets and threw it on the ground. Immediately the area was covered by a thick smokescreen.

"_A smoke bomb! He's sneakier than I thought."_ Gray thought as he tried to predict where the next attack would come from. Unfortunately, he didn't manage in time and suddenly heard a voice from his left side. And it was much too close for his liking.

"Gatsuga!"

"_I got him!"_ Kiba thought as he felt how he and Akamaru connected with their opponent. A moment later however he noticed that something felt off.

"Ice Make: Shield!"

Although heavily damaged, the magical ice shield still held strong. Unlike the wall, this spell lacked the power to completely stop Kiba's attack, but the little time it had bought was all that Gray needed to finish this fight. Bringing his hands together Gray spoke the words that would finish this fight.

"Ice Make: Geyser!"

An icy tower erupted from the ground and struck Kiba and Akamaru in their unguarded side. The duo was sent flying and only came to a stop after breaking through several walls. Unable to take this much abuse, Akamaru's transformation faded away, and revealed the large white dog he truly was. Kiba was heavily bruised and only barely clinging to consciousness, yet he still managed to send an angry glare at Gray, who was almost casually strolling towards him.

"Damn it…" Kiba muttered weakly. "This is just like one year ago… Naruto… where are you, you idiot…?"

With that Kiba finally drifted into the realm of unconsciousness. His last words however, confused Gray. One year ago? Had they been attacked before? But by whom? They hadn't even known that Konoha existed back then. The rumors about them had only popped up around… one year ago.

"Something fishy's going on here…" Gray said to himself. Something was wrong about the whole thing. If the enemy had such large numbers, why were they holing themselves up in this village? Why had Gray seen civilian shops in the city? Nothing about this place suggested that it had anything to do with a dark guild.

"_Just what is going on here?"_

**XxBreakxX**

It was utter pandemonium in the streets of Konoha. Gazille cursed as he ran past destroyed buildings, ignoring the screams of wounded. Gazille was still in a pretty good condition, but without the iron he had found and eaten, he'd definitely have run out of energy a by now. The most dangerous thing about the Konoha mages, in his opinion, wasn't their variety of abilities since they tended to be weaker compared to those of a specialized mage. No, it was their teamwork that made them so dangerous. It didn't matter if most of the Fairy Tail mages were individually stronger than the bulk of the Konoha mages since they worked together in a way that caught most mages off guard. It was almost scary; they were like a well-oiled machine of destruction.

Gazille's thoughts about teamwork were interrupted by a scream he immediately recognized.

"Levy! Shit! Can those two dimwits of her teammates do nothing right?"

With his sharp hearing it was no trouble for Gazille to locate the area the scream had come from, and so it took him not even two minutes to reach the gates of a large compound. What the Iron Dragon Slayer saw when he reached the gates made him both freeze and his blood boil at the same time.

Before him stood one of the fighters that had invaded Magnolia. He remembered him clearly; he had been the one who had deflected Natsu's and his combined Dragon Roar attack. And now the same man stood over the bloodied and beaten bodies of Team Shadow Gear. The man's pupil-less stare met his own.

"Hanabi-oujosama… please retreat immediately." Neji said as he eyed the newcomer. Gazille blinked in surprise but quickly caught himself again. He hadn't even noticed the little girl behind the longer haired man at first.

When Hanabi nodded weakly and ran off ,their eyes locked again, both of them thinking exactly the same thing.

"_This guy… is strong."_

This wouldn't be an easy battle. For either of them.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**XxOmake: Troble in ParadisexX**

Erza stared at the sight before her.

"C'mon Erza-chan, I know it's hard the first time, but you promised you'd try." Naruto said encouragingly.

The red-head looked at the guy she had been trying to kill a short while back.

"I know I promised, but it's just looks so big and slimy… I'll have to gag for sure."

Naruto sighed. "Believe me; I know what you're going through. I still remember how I tried it for the first time and I'm still not used to it."

Erza sighed heavily. "I guess I'll give it a try… Not like I have much of a choice, right?"

Erza opened her mouth wide and hesitantly placed the object in question on her tongue. After a bit of struggling on her part, she swallowed with an unreadable expression on her face.

"Slimy yet… satisfying." She said after a short while.

Naruto beamed at her. "There, it isn't that bad, right? I know that ramen is better, but my rations are almost all used up, so we can't eat it every day."

The look that Erza gave her host clearly said that eating ramen every day wasn't all that better. "Two weeks of nothing but ramen and worms… What did I do to deserve this?" She muttered.

Naruto simply shrugged. "I gave up figuring that out a long time ago."

**XxOmake EndxX**

**REPOST FROM SIR GODOT**


	7. Fighting Fate

**XxChapter 7: Fighting FatexX**

At this very moment, Lucy thoroughly hated her life. Not only was she participating in a guild extermination that had turned into nothing short of a total war, but her opponent used bugs. Bugs! Why was it always her that had to fight the weird ones? Shaking her head, the blonde pushed those thoughts aside. She was a mage of Fairy Tail, she had to win this fight, no matter how gross it was!

"Open, Gate of the Scorpion, Scorpio!"

As the bugs of her opponent continued to close in on Lucy, the Celestial Spirit Mage decided that it was the best to keep the insects at a distance. Thus, with a flash of light Scorpio appeared, a confident grin on his face. It took the spirit only a short moment to assess the situation and why Lucy had summoned him. His grin got even wider as he raised his large tail cannon and took aim.

"We are! This is our…"

Shino, who was hidden in the shadows of the buildings around them, raised an eyebrow at the strange summoning creature his opponent had called. It looked human, but not quite. However, his analysis would have to wait until the battle was over, especially since the girl and her partner apparently were planning something.

"SANDBUSTER!"

To Shino's great surprise, a huge wave of sand shot out from the tip of the red and white haired summoning's tail, blasting away his crawling comrades. The wave of sand was so strong that even Shino himself was hit and sent flying for a bit.

When the sand died down, Lucy carefully scanned her surroundings. After making sure that it was safe for the moment, she turned to Scorpio.

"You think we got him?"

The Celestial Spirit looked cautious, his confident grin replaced by a serious expression.

"Not sure, the attack definitely hit him, but it'd be quite surprising if a single attack were enough to take him down."

The duo carefully walked through the sand covered alley, making sure that no one was trying to sneak up on them. However, to their great surprise, they soon found Shino's body almost completely covered by sand and apparently out cold. Lucy prodded him experimentally and hurried back to Scorpio afterwards. Shino didn't move.

"Huh. Maybe he was a lot weaker than he looked." Lucy wondered out loud.

Scorpio just laughed. "We are perhaps just too much to handle for him and squashed him like one of his bugs! Hahaha!"

"What an interesting summoning. It looks so very human… Truly fascinating."

The blood of the mage and her partner ran cold when they heard the flat voice of their opponent directly behind them. Before any of the two could react, the buried body before them dissolved into countless insects that suddenly latched onto Scorpio, covering every inch of the spirit's body.

"Scorpio!" Lucy shouted in alarm. Who knew what those bugs might do to her friend?

Before Lucy could reach for her key to cancel the summoning, the bugs dispersed again, leaving behind a barely conscious Scorpio. The spirit with dichromatic hair only vaguely heard Lucy calling out to him.

"Lucy…" He began, straining himself to remain in the human world just a little longer.

"Be careful, those bugs… they drain magic. Don't get caught… by… them…"

With a puff of smoke the spirit disappeared, leaving behind a stunned looking Lucy.

"_Magic draining bugs? Is he an anti-mage?"_

Her thoughts were interrupted when Shino appeared from the ground, sand falling down from his long jacket. He looked perfectly fine, and had escaped the attack unscathed it seemed.

"So this is 'magic'. It's truly different from chakra, but since it is still a form of energy, my allies were able to eat it. This is very reassuring. Why is that? Because it means that my clan will have no trouble to fight against the attacking mages."

Lucy's eyes widened at the statement. "Clan?" She asked out loud. "You mean there are more of you?"

Shino looked at his opponent, his expression completely unreadable due to his shades, hood and high collar. The heir of the Aburame Clan had no qualms about answering her. Psychological attacks were also perfectly useful in battle, and it appeared that the news of more fighters like him were deeply unsettling the girl.

"Of course. The Aburame Clan is one of the many clans in Konoha, and although we are not as famed as some of the others, we have always produced loyal and strong warriors."

After giving his answer he started to walk towards Lucy, who immediately got into a guarded position. While the bugs began to swirl around their master again, the blonde had no idea whom she should summon next. The only other spirit with an attack that would hit all the bugs that were crawling around was Aquarius, but she couldn't call her without a water source.

"_What should I do?"_ Lucy thought frantically. _"Loki isn't suited for this kind of opponent and those damn shades would probably half the effect of most of Loki's light attacks! Damn, I have to try!"_

Lucy drew the key of the lion, but the moment she prepared to summon Loki, she stopped. Her eyes widened when she saw countless bugs crawling across her hand, which she could already barely feel anymore. Her opponent simply raised his arms and a huge swarm of new bugs came out of his sleeves, joining the ones flying around and circling around the hooded shinobi.

"I'm afraid I cannot allow you to continue fighting. Why is that? Because you are an enemy."

The bugs surged forward, ready to drain Lucy's magic completely. The blonde could only watch in horror as the bugs were about to engulf her. However, things came differently.

"Karyu no Hoko! (Fire Dragon's Roar)"

"Ice Make: Geyser!"

A huge fireball descended from above the two fighters and incinerated the incoming bugs while a fountain of ice erupted from the ground. The ice slammed into the surprised Shino's unguarded gut and instantly knocked the Aburame heir out cold.

"Ha! Take that you stupid bugs!"

"Aye! You shouldn't bug Lucy!"

"Shut up Natsu! We're in the middle of a war, don't tell everyone where you are!"

"Shut up yourself, Gray! At least I don't leave a trail of clothes for my opponents to follow!"

Lucy had never been happier to hear the bickering voices of Natsu and Gray.

**XxBreakxX**

"Take that!"

With a swing of his mighty fist, Elfman sent an unfortunate shinobi who had neglected his guard flying. After skipping across the road like a pebble over the water's surface a few times he finally came to a halt and didn't move. Elfman let out a satisfied grunt. One clean hit of his fists was enough to take out most of his opponents it appeared, but since they had the tendency to move around quite quickly it wasn't easy to get said hit in.

"At least that one didn't suddenly turn into a log again… Where did that thing come from anyway?"

Elfman stopped his musings with a shake of his head. There were more pressing matters at hand. Falling into a slight jog so he wouldn't exhaust himself by running all the time Elfman started to proceed through the village. There had to be some clues about Erza's whereabouts somewhere. After running past several buildings, the sounds of battle always clearly audible, Elfman stumbled across a sight that let his blood run cold.

In the middle of the street lay two of his fellow guild members, both completely still. Due to their unique clothes Elfman had no problem identifying the two.

"Alzack! Bisca!" Just a moment later the silver haired man was at the side of the two western mages. Both were covered in bruises and looked like they had been thoroughly put through the wringer. However, at hearing Elfman's shout Alzack's form twitched a little. The Take Over using mage carefully picked up the form of his defeated comrade to find out just what had happened to those two who were an excellent team.

"Alzack! What happened to you and Bisca?" Elfman urged.

Alzack grimaced as he forced his body to respond even though the pain he was experiencing was doing its best to keep him from it. "How is… Bisca?" He managed to get out. Even now the girl he had a huge crush on was more important to him than his own condition.

Elfman took a quick look at the unconscious girl. Besides her bruises she seemed to be fine, at least Elfman couldn't see any life threatening injuries on her.

"She'll be fine, she's just knocked out. What the hell happened to you guys? You're an excellent team, who could beat the two of you down like this?"

Alzack winced a little when the unpleasant memories resurfaced. "It was just a single Konoha mage… But he was so incredibly fast; we couldn't even properly aim at him. Be careful, Elfman, that guy's… a… beast…"

After that Alzack lost consciousness once more, the last of his reserves used up. This slightly worried Elfman. During the Fighting Festival Alzack had proven to be quite strong and possess quite a lot of stamina. For a single opponent to defeat those two… Elfman began to realize that Konoha was even more dangerous than he had thought.

Elfman clenched his fists. "How can I let this go by and still call myself a man…? Whoever did this, I will put you DOWN!"

As if to underline his words, suddenly a wall behind Elfman broke apart as a body was sent flying through it at high speeds. Turning around Elfman saw another Fairy Tail mage, knocked out and with a little blood coming from his mouth.

"Macao!"

But before Elfman could see to his comrade's health, a voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Yosh! Another one of the unyouthful invaders has been repelled! And if I can't ten more before the hour is up I shall pound ten logs into the earth with my bare hands!"

The Konoha mage before Elfman was dressed in one of the strangest getups he had ever seen, and considering the number of weird people in Fairy Tail that was saying a lot. Who the hell wore a green spandex with orange leg warmers?

Elfman's eyes narrowed. Despite the rather ridiculous clothes, this guy had still beaten Macao, and if his intuition was right he had also beaten down Alzack and Bisca. He had to be careful.

Lee had also noticed the silver haired mage. On the one hand, he was glad that there were so many evil mages in his area, since it meant he didn't have to search for them. On the other hand, fighting all of them one after the other was rather tiring. If it hadn't been for the grueling training sessions Lee always put himself through, he probably would have collapsed from exhaustion by now. The chunin could see that his opponent was also not in top condition anymore, he probably had fought his fair share of battles as well before coming here.

Still, he had to defend his home. He couldn't allow something as simple as exhaustion tostop him from it. "Greetings, mage of Fiore! My name is Rock Lee, the Green Beast of Konoha, and I hereby challenge you to a fight!"

The silver haired mage scowled at his next opponent. That guy had some nerve, acting like this was some sort of sport festival rather than a bloody battle. When his eyes fell on the beaten forms of his comrades, the annoyance he felt turned into righteous anger.

With a yell of determination, Elfman transformed his right arm into the form of the Black Bull and attacked the slightly surprised Lee with it.

"Bring it you punk!"

The fist crushed into the ground when Lee dodged by jumping into the air, and left a large crater. Lee retaliated with a fierce spinning kick that Elfman evaded by ducking beneath it. To his great surprise, however, the warrior of Konoha had enough spin to attack him a second time, this kick aimed low enough to hit him for sure if he didn't act fast.

Elfman grunted as the foot grazed his face. The silver haired mage then lifted his right arm again and tried to hit his opponent with a backhand spin, but to the green clad warrior proved to be quite agile and simply used Elfman's arm to support himself by landing on it in a handstand. Lee didn't remain there for long and jumped away with a series of back flips, creating some distance between his opponent and himself.

Lee intently scanned his opponent. Then he suddenly nodded to himself, slightly confusing his silver haired opponent.

"Yosh! I think I have a good measure on your strength style now. Now that we've warmed up, let the real battle begin!"

With these words Lee shot at his opponent, his right arm shooting forward like a cannon ball. However, the punch was a straight one and Elfman knew he could counter it with a punch on his own. His transformed arm shot forward and met Lee's fist. The Take Over user had expected his opponent to lose this direct battle of strength, but to his astonishment their punches had been completely equal and had cancelled each other out!

The battle continued and it was not going good for the Fairy Tail mage.

Elfman scowled. His opponent was simply better than him. Despite his relatively unsuspecting build his punches were quite strong, even equal to the arms of some of the weaker beasts Elfman had access to. He also had the advantage in form since Elfman was more of a brawler, but this kid had probably trained in Martial Arts. Unfortunately there was also no contest in speed; the damn bowl cut was running circles around him – backwards even. Just what kind of magic was he using? And he was so subtle at using it that Elfman could have sworn he wasn't using any magic at all!

"_Damn, it doesn't matter how many punches I can take if I can't dish out any! I guess I have no choice!"_

"Take Over!"

Magic enveloped Elfman's form and transformed him into the very beast that had once caused him to go berserk. The mage of Fairy Tail sent a powerful glare at his opponent, who had stopped his attacks in surprise when Elfman had transformed.

"I'll end this quickly now. My friends are counting on me to help them find Erza."

Lee meanwhile was quite surprised by his opponent's transformation. It reminded him a little of the Orochimaru's Curse Seal, but at the same time the monster before the green clad youth didn't emit the same dark presence he normally associated with it.

"I see you too are a beast." Lee spoke with a serious tone. "Still, I shall not let you pass! I will defend Konoha with all my might!"

"Bring it on!" Both of them yelled at the same time as they lunged at each other.

Elfman began with a powerful swing of his right arm and Lee noticed that he had gotten a lot faster than before. The chunin narrowly dodged the swing and felt the wind rush over his face before he countered with a roundhouse kick to Elfman's exposed torso.

The transformed mage felt the attack coming with his sharpened senses and immediately brought his left hand up and caught Lee's left leg in it. Not one to waste the moment of surprise Elfman spun around quickly before throwing Lee into a wall, the momentum accelerating the black haired shinobi enough for him to actually crash through yet another wall on the other side of the building.

Lee grunted a little under the debris that covered his body. He had underestimated his opponent's increase in speed and power and he had paid for it. It didn't help that Lee was still exhausted from fighting all the other mages before; even his almost legendary stamina was slowly running dry.

"I don't want to use it not knowing what battles might still wait for me after this… But I can't allow myself to be defeated as long as I can still fight on! Forgive me, Gai-sensei, but I have to use that technique…!"

Outside of the building Elfman was wondering what had happened to his opponent. Was he already down? Maybe he had been far more exhausted than he had expected, which would mean that the magic he had used to transform had been somewhat of a waste.

"No…" Elfman muttered to himself. "All those guys I fought so far were incredible hard to keep down. He's not done yet…"

True to his prediction Elfman soon found himself assaulted by several rocks flying towards him at high speed. It was easy for Elfman to either dodge or simply crush the incoming rocks on this form and he knew that this was just a diversion. He had to keep his guard up.

"Too slow."

Elfman's eyes widened in shock when he heard a voice from behind himself. He whipped around and immediately sent a punch at whoever had sneaked up on him. But his fist sailed through the air without hitting anything. Suddenly all of his senses screamed at Elfman to move. Elfman could feel the beast inside him screaming at the danger it was sensing. But where was the source?

"This battle… is over!"

Elfman only noticed he had been hit when he was flying through the air. It was the same guy he had sent flying through the wall.

"_Impossible! I didn't even sense him move!"_

Meanwhile, Lee was still standing on the ground, his body completely still. Yet it was bristling with unreleased power, begging to unleash it. Lee's skin was blazing red and his eyes looked like they had turned pure white.

"Hachimon. (Eight Gates)"

To the normal eye, it looked like Lee simply vanished. In truth, however, he had jumped so fast that most eyes just couldn't follow him.

Elfman, who was still in the air, was trying to regain his bearing from the sudden punch to the chin that had catapulted him upwards. He felt his opponent approach and he knew that if he didn't stop him now the battle would end with his loss.

The Take Over using mage tried to swat his quickly approaching enemy away with his large hands, but it was futile. Lee was already too close to him to be hit.

"_Damn! I have to block him quickly, or…"_

Elfman's thoughts were interrupted when a fist buried itself deeply in his stomach. The punch had been so fast that it had BURNED Elfman. The beast man's mouth opened in pain as a mixture of blood and spit flew out, but Lee wasn't done yet.

Lee's fists shot back and forth at such a high speed that it was nothing but a blur. His fists were moving so fast that they were set ablaze by the friction they created and shot orange flames both at his opponent and past him. This was Lee's ultimate technique, the forbidden art he had learned from his master.

"Asa Kujaku! (Morning Peacock)"

Lee's triumphant shout mixed with Elfman's cry of pain as the attack heavily damaged the mage's entire body.

The attack ended, and Elfman fell to the ground, the impact creating a large crater. He had transformed back into his human form and was out cold. His body no longer had the strength to maintain the transformation.

Lee landed shortly afterwards, but he was only in a slightly better condition. He had pushed his exhausted body even further by opening the gates and he knew that he would pay the prize for it once the adrenaline left his body.

The green clad shinobi winced as he straightened himself. His legs were wobbly and he could barely stand. "I need to find a medic…" Lee said to himself before he started to slowly walk away.

He didn't make it far.

Just as Lee was about to leave the area, a whizzing sound reached his ears. He didn't have time to react in any way before something hit him and electricity started to course through his entire body.

Lee screamed in both surprise and pain until unconsciousness claimed him and he fell over. Several yards away Alzack dropped his gun. He had used his last reserves of magic with this attack, but at least they had taken him down. A smile grazed the western mage's tired features as he once again felt his awareness slip away.

It was a battle without victor.

**XxBreakxX**

While Lee's battle had just come to an end, his female teammate was having problems in ending hers. Tenten really hated her life sometimes. Why was it that she was always pitted against the worst opponents possible for her? In the Chunin Exams she had been forced to fight a wind user who could simply blow all her attacks away and keep her at a distance. And now…

"Take this!"

A true hailstorm of bladed weapon fell upon a wide area, covering the ground entirely with metal.

Tenten was breathing heavily by now. She really had the worst luck. Her opponent was a master of water techniques, which was already hard enough. But she also had the ability to morph her entire body into water, not unlike a certain clan from Mizugakure Tenten had heard about. Which meant that even if her weapons hit, they just passed right through her.

"_And to make things worse, I don't know any Raiton Jutsu. Damn, this doesn't look too good."_

Slowly the dust created by her latest attack receded and revealed what the bun-haired girl had feared all along. Her opponent was completely unharmed.

"Juvia is impressed. You can use just as many weapons as Erza can, though your control isn't the same. You cannot hurt Juvia."

Juvia looked at her opponent with her usual stoic expression. Truth to be told she had gotten really lucky with this girl as her opponent. Unlike Erza this girl was unable to channel magic through her weapons which would have been able to hurt her. She had seen of the other Konoha mages fight, and their abilities hadn't been restricted to a single type of magic.

"Juvia is sorry, but she has to end this."

Tenten immediately raised her guard again, but in her exhausted state it was of no use. As the female mage rushed at her, she braced herself for the impact. The Konoha chunin felt how the currents of water mercilessly assaulted her body, her attempts to block nothing but a nuisance to her opponent.

The attack stopped and Tenten fell to the ground, coughing heavily to get the water she had swallowed out of her lungs. Her opponent simply stood before her, not using the opening she had to attack Tenten. The brown haired girl got really angry at that. The girl before her didn't even take her seriously enough to attack her when she was down! To her she was someone she didn't need to exploit an opening for to win.

"_I refuse to lose like this again. I'm not just someone who provides backup from a distance! No, if I want to become a kunoichi like Tsunade-sama I can't stop here!"_

But what could she do? Tenten's mind was racing as she tried to think of any weapon that could help her in this situation. But it was no use. She didn't have any weapon scrolls left. The only thing she still had on her was a single smoke bomb and the scroll were she kept weapons that either needed to get fixed or she wanted to sell as scrap metal.

At this point it didn't matter to her anymore. With a yell of determination Tenten pushed herself up and jumped back, drawing the scroll in the process.

Juvia watched with both curiosity and a little concern what her opponent was going to summon this time. She doubted it was something that could turn the battle around; otherwise her opponent would have used it from the start. Still, underestimating an opponent was something she would never do.

A poof of smoke covered Tenten's form and soon Juvia was assaulted by yet another set of weapons. With a raised eyebrow the water mage noted that these weapons were in a rather bad condition if not downright broken. Her opponent seemed to get desperate.

The smoke bomb caught her by surprise though. Not one to take any chances, Juvia transformed her body into water again and prepared to end this with her next attack.

There! A shadow in the dust!

Juvia lashed out with her liquefied right arm and struck her opponent heavily. The Konoha mage was apparently far too exhausted to dodge by now. The attack connected, but somehow Tenten found the strength to push on, her makeshift weapon firmly in her hands. With a final yell she rushed past the water and executed a perfect cut against Juvia's exposed side before collapsing yet again, the damage she had sustained too much for her to bear.

The former Phantom Lord mage watched with no discernable expression how her opponent fell. She had almost admired the girl's will to face her, even though she had been heavily outclassed. But just as Juvia was about to leave, pain suddenly erupted from Juvia's left side. Her eyes widened in shock as her gaze travelled to the spot where the pain was coming from. Blood. She was bleeding. The brown haired girl had managed to cut her! The wound wasn't very deep, but it wasn't shallow either.

With no real way to treat the wound by herself Juvia decided to look for Wendy. If she continued to fight like this the wound would get only worse.

As she was leaving the battlefield, leaving the barely conscious Tenten behind, Juvia wondered what had just happened.

"_Juvia doesn't understand. These Konoha mages are so strange… Why do they keep fighting even though they are heavily outmatched? Why don't they try to escape and hide? And how did this girl manage to suddenly wound Juvia? I must ask Gray-sama about this…"_

On the devastated battlefield, Tenten was only clinging to consciousness, her eyes getting heavier and heavier. She had bet everything on this last attack, and strangely enough it had apparently hurt the water mage. Even though she had lost, she was a little satisfied now.

"_I wonder how I did it_…" Tenten wondered as her mind went dark. _"I just attacked her with this old metal rod, it's not even that sharp aside from the tip… were did I even get this…?"_

It was only after the battle that Tenten would realize just what she had used to attack Juvia.

When Team Gai had returned after the invasion of Pain, Tenten had been with Neji who had been tending to the grievously wounded Hinata. Seeing her surrounded and pierced by some strange metal rods, Tenten had picked up some of them to see if they were any good as weapons. However, shortly afterwards they had been sent to this strange place and the rods had been forgotten.

Rods that were essentially the blood of Gedo Mazo, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Realm.

**XxBreakxX**

Once again a demon raged in Konoha. This time however it was not a several stories high beast like Shukaku or the Kyubi. No, this demon was just as tall as a normal human, which didn't make it any less deadly though. In this battle Mirajane showed the world why she had been feared once more. The Satan Soul ablaze, the silver haired woman tore through the enemy ranks like a hot knife through butter.

"We must hold this position!" An unnamed chunin shouted at his comrades.

"It's no use! Let's retreat and regroup before…AGH!"

The words of the chunin's fellow shinobi died on his lips when a blast of pure magic power tore the ground asunder, throwing stones the size of boulders left and right like paper weights, catching the unfortunate shinobi on their journey. And amidst the destruction stood Mirajane, her hair whipping around as if it was a living being. An angry scowl was prominent on her demonic visage as she stared at the fallen Konoha mages around her. She didn't care what condition they were left in. The demon inside her screamed at her to cause more and more destruction; and for the first time in her life, Mirajane saw no reason to disagree with the voice.

Konoha would bleed for what they had done.

Suddenly her tail sprung alive and almost lazily swatted two shuriken away that had been aimed at the back of her head. She turned around glanced in the direction where they had come from. One of the warriors that had been caught in her blast from before had forced himself in a sitting position. Although one of his legs seemed broken and he was bleeding from a cut above his right eye he was still fighting. Mirajane found herself impressed and intrigued by the tenaciousness her enemies were displaying.

"_What is it that drives them so hard?"_

Calmly she approached the downed man of Konoha who didn't even try to escape. He knew that he didn't stand a chance in his condition, yet his expression remained defiant.

Mirajane hoisted the man up, holding him by the collar of his green flak jacket. With a voice as cold as ice she asked: "Tell me, where can I find the man you call 'Maelstrom'? He and I have unfinished business to attend to."

To her surprise the wounded man simply chuckled.

"Tough luck, bitch, the shinobi of Konoha never betray their comrades! Pray that you are far away once the one you seek arrives! The Hero of the Leaf will never forgive the likes of you for what you have done!"

The Demon of Fairy Tail tightened her grip, her eyes narrowing. The man in her grasp began to cough when his air supply was drastically reduced this way. "You're going to tell me everything I want to know. I have my ways of making you talk."

But before Mirajane could do anything to realize her threat, a hand wrapped itself around her right wrist. The grip was incredibly strong and when it tightened the strength of it along with the surprise caused her to drop the man she had been holding.

"Destroying our homes, threatening the people of this village… I've seen enough."

A brutal kick connected with Mirajane's abdomen and sent her flying through a nearby building.

As the S-Class Mage recovered from the surprise attack, she winced when she stood up.

"_That kick… what incredible strength. Even though I'm using __Satan Soul__, it dealt this much damage. But who IS she? I didn't even sense her approach."_

Once Mirajane had completely freed herself of the debris that surrounded her she saw something she definitely hadn't expected to see. By the man she had just threatened stood a woman who appeared to be in her mid-twenties. She had blond hair that was tied in two low pigtails and reached to the end of her shoulder blades. If Mirajane had been asked if the woman had any other distinguishing feature the female mage would probably note the impressive bust size of the newcomer.

All in all, the woman did not look like she was able to send Mirajane flying with a single kick that probably wasn't even full strength.

Pushing these thoughts aside for now, Mirajane concentrated on the blonde who stood a few yards away. She was currently talking to the wounded man from before.

"I healed your leg as well as I could for the moment. Try to keep the strain to a minimum and see another medic once you've gotten your comrade and yourself out of here."

The man didn't seem too thrilled about the idea of leaving. "Tsunade-sama, are you sure you want to fight her alone? She's a demon!"

The woman's answer was a harsh shout. "You fool! Who do you think you're talking to? I may have passed on the hat of the Hokage, but I've been fighting on battlefields before you were even born! A youngster like you would only get in my way. Now get out of here!"

The man hung his head in defeat. "Yes, Tsunade-sama."

After picking up his unconscious comrade the man sent a last look at the blonde woman before he leapt away. Mirajane's eyes went wide at that. She had clearly broken the man's leg. How was it possible that he was already able to jump like that again?

"Finally, they're gone… I really don't want anyone to get caught in the crossfire that's sure to come."

Suddenly, a wave of killer intent washed over Mirajane. The blonde woman turned around and her brown eyes sent a glare at the demon that let her blood run cold.

"As a doctor I am normally against battles, but you… you and your little friends… I'll show you exactly why Konoha is known as the strongest village there is!"

Tsunade had returned to the field of battle once again, and this time nothing would stop her from defending her home.

**XxBreakxX**

While in one part of the town Mirajane was being confronted by the legendary shinobi Tsunade, another battle of terrific proportions was approaching at another location.

Gildarts Clive, demolitions expert and strongest mage of Fairy Tail, was something like an organized natural disaster to Konoha. Mirajane might have been a horror to the warriors of Konoha, but Gildarts was more than that. Nothing could stop him. People, buildings… all was gone in the blink of an eye in face of this man's magic.

And he wasn't even fighting yet. So far no one had posed a threat to Gildarts, the strongest mage of Fairy Tail besides the master himself. With a flick of his hand, thrown weapons were gone, and if he waved hard enough, so were those who had thrown him. This didn't mean he wasn't taking things seriously, this was a full out war after all. But Gildarts knew his strength, and he could also estimate his opponents' strengths. So far, none had been able to match him.

However, even Gildarts was surprised when suddenly chains were wrapped around him.

"We got him Kotetsu!" "Alright Izumo!"

Hagane Kotetsu and Kamizuki Izumo, the most infamous chunin duo of Konoha didn't know what they were in for.

One moment the two friends were trying to stop the bearded mage from his rampage by attacking him with their kunai swords, the next they were violently flung away as Gildarts simply used his "Crash" magic on the chain to destroy it and hit the two attackers flying at the same time. At this moment, Kotetsu and Izumo felt like Gamabunta had stepped on them.

And all of that happened without Gildarts actually realizing he had been attacked.

"Hmm? I'm sorry, I guess I wasn't really paying attention and used my magic on instinct… You guys are still alive, are you?"

From their respective positions both Izumo and Kotetsu stared incredulously. Was this guy for real?

Gildarts, meanwhile, remained perfectly calm. Sure, he was really angry about what had happened, but if he allowed his mind to be clouded by anger now he might make a mistake he'd regret later. If "Maelstrom" was any indication, Konoha had some powerful fighters.

"Say, you two wouldn't happen to know where I can find a young man with blond hair and blue eyes? There's something I'd like to discuss with him…" Gildarts' voice was completely friendly, and yet the two chunin felt a shiver run down their spine. The years of experience they had gained as shinobi allowed them to realize that they had vastly underestimated their opponent.

"You're not gonna talk? Damn, that's a shame… Well, I guess I'll just have to keep looking."

Just as he prepared to walk away, a shout notified him of yet another presence. But he never would have expected it to be…

"DYNAMIC ENTRY!"

…such an obvious attack.

A green blur sped towards the S-Class Mage, who lifted his right arm to block the attack. As the foot of his attacker connected with his arm, he raised an eyebrow. The kick was incredibly strong, despite, or maybe even because of the direct approach behind it.

With a push, Gildarts sent his attacker flying back again, but the man simply spun around in the air a few times before gracefully landing on his feet. Now, the strongest mage of Fairy Tail got a good look at the newcomer for the first time. Most people would have been shocked by the black bowl cut and the horrendous green jumpsuit, but then again, Gildarts had seen a lot and members of Fairy Tail had generally a very high freak tolerance.

Maito Gai had arrived on the scene.

"YOSH! Although you are an enemy, your youth must shine brightly if you could block my kick this easily! Allow me, Maito Gai, Konoha's Sublime Green Beast of Prey to be your opponent!"

Gildarts smirked, but it wasn't an expression of confidence. No, this was the expression of a warrior who knew that his abilities were about to be pushed to his limit.

"My name is Gildarts Clive… and I accept your challenge!"

**XxBreakxX**

At the Hyuga compound, Neji continued to stare at the newly arrived mage as he heard Hanabi's steps get farther and farther away. The young jonin recognized him. Back when he had met up with the other shinobi in Magnolia, he had seen him among the attackers from Fairy Tail. Thanks to his Byakugan, it had been easy to watch them and see their abilities.

"_If I remember correctly, he uses metal to attack. I don't know how advanced his control over it is, but I should have a slight advantage due to my training with Tenten."_

Neji's thoughts were calm and collected. He couldn't afford to let his emotions cloud his mind in a battle of such a level. His kekkei genkai revealed the man's extraordinary power. It was almost a little like Naruto's Sage Mode. The man before him was incredibly inclined to nature.

A few yards away, Gazille was having similar thoughts. He too remembered his opponent, as he had been the one to deflect the combined Dragon Roarattack of Natsu and him.

"I wonder what kind of magic he uses… Maybe it's something defensive, but his eyes… something's telling me that they aren't just for show. Better be careful with this one, but first I have to get Levy and the others out of here."

"Levy, wimps! Wake up!" The Dragon Slayer roared, his eyes never leaving Neji. So far, the white eyes mage had done nothing, which wasn't necessarily a good sign.

Gazille's sudden shout caused the mages of team Shadow Gear to slowly escape the clutches of unconsciousness. With a groan the three sat up, every one of them pressing their hands on aching parts of their bodies.

Levy was the first to remember what had happened. With a surprised shout of "Gazille" she looked at the Iron Dragon Slayer that had come to their rescue. Her two friends weren't sure if they should be grateful or pissed to be saved by him of all people.

"Listen Levy, you guys get out of here. In our condition you won't be off any help to me, so get going!"

The three looked torn at the idea of leaving their guild member behind, but in the end they saw reason. It was true; Neji had taken them down like they were nothing. They had to regain their strength first. The three shakily stood up and walked towards the exit of the compound, but before they left it Levy turned around one last time.

"You better win this fight, you hear me Gazille?!"

Gazille heard their steps get farther and farther away, despite the battles that were engulfing the village. Good. Now he could focus on his opponent completely.

"I'm surprised you didn't attack them just now. I thought you Konoha bastards were cold blooded beasts, considering what you did to Quatro Kerberos." Gazille spoke, his voice serious. Nevertheless a confident grin spread across his face.

His opponent merely raised an eyebrow at that statement. "Quatro Cerberus? I'm afraid I do not understand. As for your comrades, I'm not stupid enough to shift my focus on someone weak when a much stronger fighter could possibly attack me while I'm preoccupied."

"You've got some nerve talking like that…" Gazille muttered. "Looks like I'll have to BEAT you to remember the guild you guys burned to the ground.

Neji's confusion continued to grow at his opponent's words. He knew for a fact that Konoha had never interacted with any guild, besides the occasional spying mission on them to discover the inner workings of these organizations.

"_It doesn't matter now."_ Neji reminded himself. _"Whatever he's talking about doesn't change the fact that we are to fight each other. Thinking about something that does not involve the battle would only distract me. However, I should probably remember this and report it to the Intelligence Squad later on."_

Both fighters had fallen silent, and simply stared at each other. Their standoff continued for what seemed like hours to the combatants while they actually only had been facing each other for a single minute now.

Then, as if both of them had been alerted by the same signal, the fighters sprang into action. After a short exchange of punches, it became clear that they couldn't have been any more different in their chosen style of combat. While Neji attacked with a fluid grace in his attack, Gazille was blunt and direct, thus Neji had no problem hitting Gazille's right arm with a series of swift strikes, all of them cleanly hitting the desired pressure points. At first, Gazille wanted to laugh at his opponent when he saw how he chose to POKEhim instead of actually punching him, but this feeling quickly evaporated when the Iron Dragon Slayer noticed that someone was wrong with his arm after it had been hit. Gazille quickly chose to create some distance between his opponent and him by kicking the unguarded side of the brown haired fighter. While it came to the mage's great surprise that his opponent was still able to block an attack to a mostly blind angle, it still forced the Konoha warrior to stop his attack and jump back.

Now, Gazille had the time he needed to take a look at the strange wounds he had sustained. He was confused to see that there were tiny scorch marks on his body, like someone had tried to extinguish a match on his skin, only even less pronounced.

"The hell is this?" Gazille muttered to himself. It didn't really hurt, but his arm felt sluggish, like there wasn't enough blood flowing through it.

It was the voice of his opponent that drew his attention away from his arm.

"Your body is strange… Your skin is harder than it should normally be, so my attacks are less effective than I thought. Very well, I guess I'll have to switch tactics a bit."

With that, Neji lunged at Gazille, who was slightly surprised at the ferociousness his opponent was now showing. But it didn't matter, the Dragon Slayer was confident to win against the long haired boy in close combat. The black haired mage channeled his magic power through his body and coated it in scales.

Neji's attacks stopped in their tracks when he hit the scales for the first time.

"_What is this? Scales? Where did they come from?"_

Gazille grinned triumphantly when he saw his opponent's surprised expression.

"Now it's my turn."

With a powerful swing of his arm, Gazille sent Neji flying, the Konoha shinobi's bones groaning in protest due to the sheer force behind the blow. Neji had no time to let his guard down, as Gazille was already starting his own offence.

"Tetsuryukon! (Iron Dragon Club)"

Using a speed that betrayed his large frame, Gazille moved in front of Neji. The Iron Dragon Slayer's right arm then turned into a large iron club, which he swung at his opponent with frightening power.

The young jonin thanked his fast reflexes, as his left hand shot upwards and diverted the course of the club with a Juken strike. Once again, however, Neji grimaced as he felt the power behind the blow. It was clear that his opponent had the upper hand in terms of raw strength. The grimace was quickly replaced by surprise when Neji saw another attack coming with his Byakugan. With a quick leap to the right, the shinobi managed to dodge the smaller metal rod that had shot out of the first one he had just dodged.

"_This attack was aimed at my back right after I blocked it. Without the Byakugan I wouldn't have been able to see it. I guess he's smarter than he looks."_ Neji thought.

Gazille scowled when he saw how the white garbed warrior had just escaped his surprise attack. He had been sure that it would get him! How had he seen it coming?

"_Wait a minute… seen? Maybe that's what his eyes are for. Before that he also blocked an attack I'm sure was in a blind spot."_

The black haired mage readied himself. _"And if that's the case…"_

"I'll just overpower him head on!"

The Iron Dragon Slayer sprung forward, his entire body now coated in metallic scales. Neji was slightly surprised how confident his opponent still was, and soon found himself on the defensive side, but it didn't look too good for Neji even then.

With every strike of Gazille's iron hard body, Neji felt his strength diminish. While none of the ferocious punches had hit him up till now, the force behind them was almost too much for Neji to block.

The Hyuga grimaced slightly when he blocked another one of Gazille's heavy punches. The Iron Dragon Slayer's right fist was blocked by Neji's two crossed arms, effectively stopping it from turning the pale eyed boy's chest into a pile of broken bones, but after having blocked more than a dozen of these punches, Neji's arms finally gave in.

The Hyuga's eyes widened when he felt his left arm break. He wanted to scream as the pain suddenly shot through his body, but he couldn't. The moment his arm gave way, his defense was down, a fact Gazille immediately exploited.

"Got you now!" With a grin, Gazille sent a vicious roundhouse kick directly at his opponent's chest.

Neji's eyes bulged, as a mixture of blood and spit flew from his mouth in the short moment Gazille's leg buried itself in his ribs. Then, after an agonizing second that felt like an eternity to Neji, the young jonin was sent flying across the wide area of the Hyuga compound. After a few meters he came to a stop. He wasn't moving.

Gazille lowered his leg with a cocky grin plastered across his face. "Heh, that'll show you Konoha scum. Apparently picking on women and weaklings is all you're good for."

What Gazille didn't know, was that Neji was still awake. True, his entire body hurt and he had probably four broken ribs several cracked ones, but he refused to give in to the darkness.

"_I can't lose here! I have to protect the village! I won't fail this time, today I shall fight alongside my comrades"_

Neji's guilt had been big when he had heard about the attack on Konoha, as he hadn't been at the village at that time. While he had returned to Konoha by the time they had been teleported here, he hadn't been in the village when it had needed him the most. He couldn't fail this time. Not again.

"Never again…" Neji whispered. He summoned the remaining strength of his body and slowly pushed himself up. Gazille, who had already been in the process of leaving, was surprised to see his opponent get up again after such a blow. No mage without a body enhancing magic should have been able to move for a while after a kick that could shatter bones like glass.

"I will never fail again!" Neji shouted.

With a roar of anger he attacked his opponent, who quickly tried to intercept the attack of an opponent he had thought defeated. But he was too late. This time it was Neji who got into his guard.

"Hakke: Rokujuyon Sho! (Eight Trigrams: Sixty Four Palms!)"

It was surreal to Gazille. He was still covered in his scales, and yet those tiny little stabs his opponent used against him hurt like hell. Whenever the Dragon Slayer tried to somehow stop the blows that just kept coming, his opponent would vanish and attack from another side.

"_How the hell can this guy still move so fast? He shouldn't even have the breath to do this! I know that I broke at least three of his ribs with my kick, and his left arm should be no good either!"_

Gazille was getting angry. Was he really going to lose against someone he had underestimated again? No! This time his pride wouldn't get the better out of him!

"_I will stop him!"_

"_This is the final blow!"_

The thoughts of both fighters were clashing along with their bodies, as they forced their battered forms to strike again. While Neji was now preparing for the last stage of his attack, Gazille was feverishly looking for a way to escape it.

"DON'T SCREW WITH ME!"

"THIS IS THE END!"

Neji's hands shot forward, his body already going numb from the pain, and his lungs feeling like they were burning. Just when his left hand made contact with Gazille's iron skin, the pain returned full force. Of course, a trained shinobi like Neji was able to push past something like this, but it caused him to hesitate for a moment.

That single moment was all Gazille needed.

With a bestial roar, the former Phantom Lord Mage put his entire strength in his right fist, and delivered a devastating uppercut against his opponent. Neji's head snapped back like someone had just pulled it backwards with a rope. The pale eyes widened and the veins slowly shrunk.

"_No…"_ Neji thought desperately, as he felt his consciousness fade away. _"I can't let it end like this!"_

With a thud, the Konoha shinobi landed on the ground, his eyes glassy and blood seeping from his probably broken jaw.

Gazille was breathing heavily. For a moment he thought his opponent would stand up again and continue, but after a full minute the young man still wasn't moving. Slowly the Iron Dragon Slayer began to straighten himself. His entire body was hurting, and he barely managed to stand without his legs shaking violently, but that was ok, he just had to find some more iron and he'd be fine again in no time. While catching his breath, he kept staring at the downed form of his opponent.

"_That guy was dangerous. A magic that can pierce even a dragon's skin… These Konoha guys are a lot more dangerous than I thought, especially if they have more than one of these kind of fighters."_

The Iron Dragon Slayer took another deep breath before turning around. He had won. He had fought against a challenging opponent and won. This time his pride hadn't caused his downfall. He definitely had to find some iron now though.

"Gazille!"

A female voice got the Iron Dragon Slayer's attention. Levy and her two rather incompetent teammates were running towards him. Despite the situation, Levy was smiling. She was truly glad the Gazille was alright. The black haired man actually grinned a little at that. He was about to call out to them when the expression on Levy's face made him hesitate. The look of relief was gone; it had been replaced with an expression of shock, fear, and dread.

"Look out!"

The warning came too late. The moment the Dragon Slayer turned around, he looked directly into the burning eyes of the opponent he had thought defeated. It was impossible. By all means he shouldn't have the power to move, let alone attack! It almost seemed to Gazille as if his opponent was moving in slow motion as he brought his hands to Gazille's chest, and yet he could do nothing to stop him. It was in this short moment that Gazille realized that by now his opponent was moving through nothing but willpower.

"Hakke:"

Blood flowed freely from Neji's lips as he channeled the last of his strength to bring his opponent down. He couldn't let him walk away like this. On his pride as a Hyuga, on his pride as a shinobi of Konoha, he had to take him down!

"Hasangeki! (Eight Trigrams: Mountain Crusher)"

Gazille felt as if a sledgehammer hit him, multiple times in the same spot. The Juken attack plowed through Gazille's body as if it was tissue paper, damaging even his ridiculously tough body and organs heavily. The shockwave of the attack Neji had unleashed with his last strength was so strong that it even sent the earth behind Gazille flying with great force, destroying multiple buildings throughout the compound, yet Gazille didn't move back an inch.

Silence followed.

For a moment, everything seemed completely still. Both Neji and Gazille remained in their positions as Levy and the others got back up, since the sudden shockwave had sent them flying to the ground. The trio's eyes fell upon the still unmoving Gazille and Neji.

With a thump the white garbed fighter of Konoha fell to the ground again. He was no longer moving, but if one had stood close to him, they would have noticed a faint smile grace his lips.

From the distance between them Levi wasn't sure what exactly had just happened. Just as the Solid Script Mage was about to call out to Gazille again, overjoyed that he hadn't succumbed to the attack, she froze. Any joy she had felt for Gazille to be still standing died when the former Phantom Lord mage slowly fell on his back. His eyes were wide, blood flowing from his mouth.

"Gazille!"

The battle had ended with a draw. But whether the two fighters would ever recover from this or if they were alive at all was something no one could say at this point.

**XxBreakxX**

Lucy, Natsu, Happy, and Gray had no idea of the furious battle that had just come to a conclusion elsewhere. The Celestial Spirit Mage's joy over the arrival of her friends had slowly been replaced by annoyance. Even in the middle of a war, those two still managed to butt their heads about everything.

"Guys…" Lucy began slowly, but Natsu and Gray continued to banter about something Lucy didn't even bother to listen to while Happy was eagerly pushing both of the arguing mages' buttons.

"SHUT UP!"

With a satisfying smack Lucy let her fists collide with both Natsu's and Gray's head. The two rivals stopped their little argument to hold their heads in pain, but any attempt to complain to Lucy was stopped by the blonde's dangerous glare.

"Listen guys, I know that this situation is tough and all, and I'm really grateful that you saved me ("Saved you? I was trying to win against Gray in who beat down more Konoha mages!" - "Shut up Natsu, this is not the time to tell her that!") but we can't stay here and squabble like children all day long. Besides, don't you think that something is off about this whole thing?"

Lucy's words were thought-provoking for both Natsu and Gray. To Lucy's great surprise, Natsu thought so too.

"I think you're right, Lucy. Those mages I fought so far… They are nothing like those other Dark Guild mages I fought before. They care for each other a lot and they act like we're the ones on the wrong. But I don't get it how that could be…" Natsu's voice fell quiet after this.

"I noticed it too." Gray continued. "They are fighting furiously to protect this village, I think they have a deep emotional attachment to it. Not only that, one of the mages I fought said that something like this had happened one year ago as well. But we all know that Konoha just made its appearance one year ago. Besides, did you guys notice the many shops here? I think they just don't call it a village, this IS a village, with civilian population and all!"

Natsu and Lucy were stunned. Could it be true?

"B-but, where are the civilians then? They can't just all disappear, can they? Maybe the mages opened shops to create more workplaces." Lucy tried to explain Gray's discovery in a different way for a very simple reason.

If what Gray had said was true they were currently invading a village filled with mages AND civilians. The very thought of accidentally killing a normal family made not just Lucy's stomach curl with disgust.

"At this point I'm not sure about anything." Gray said. "It's a fact that we know almost nothing about Konoha, and the magic council was pretty tightlipped as well. I can't shake the feeling that something is wrong here."

The ice mage turned towards the fallen form of Shino. "Maybe HE can answer some of our questions…"

Just as Gray was about to approach the fallen Konoha warrior, his danger senses went wild. And not just his, Natsu, Lucy, and Happy also sensed that something was wrong.

"Above us!" Lucy shouted.

Their heads snapped up and their eyes widened when they saw a huge boulder dropping down on them. Only thanks to Lucy's quick reaction they had managed to escape the surprise attack.

"That surprised me…" Natsu muttered. "Who the hell throws rocks of that size around?"

"Hey, the bug guy is gone!" Happy suddenly noticed.

The three mages turned their heads to the place where the fallen mage had been only moments before. There was no trace of him.

"Someone's here…" Gray said. The boulder had been nothing but a diversion to draw their attention from their fallen foe. And now an enemy was hiding somewhere near them, probably waiting to make his move.

Natsu took a few sniffs with his nose. There was a strange smell in the air, one he had smelled before. It was faint and he didn't remember the smell too clearly, but he knew it for sure. And more importantly, he knew where it currently was coming from.

"Karyu no Hoko! (Fire Dragon's Roar)"

A fireball erupted from Natsu's mouth and soared towards a perfectly harmless looking pile of rubble. But the fraction of a second before the fireball hit the debris, a shadow rushed away from it.

The person that had just escaped Natsu's attack was a young man with unnaturally pale skin and black hair. His clothes were also black but strangely enough left his midriff exposed. But the strangest thing about him was his smile. It was so fake it was unsettling.

Gray and Lucy immediately recognized the face. _"That guy… he's one of the mages that helped Maelstrom and his partner escape the city!"_

"I'm impressed you managed to detect me… I was sure I was perfectly hidden."

The smile never left the newcomer's face as he spoke.

With a confident grin Natsu tapped his nose. "Yeah, you were well hidden, but you smell of ink, so I had no problem to find out where you were hiding."

The black haired boy nodded to himself, even though Natsu, Gray and Lucy were already going into a fighting stance.

"I see… you have pink hair and a good nose… Maybe you're related to the ugly…"

Out of nowhere a little pebble collided with the back of the black haired boy's head and instantly silenced him. Suddenly, a new voice could be heard, and this one was definitealy female.

"Sai… I think I already told you that there are right times for jokes, nd this definitely isn't the right time."

The boy named Sai turned around to the approaching form of a pink haired girl. For a moment the fake grin on his face became a little truer.

"Sorry, Sakura, but I read that by displaying an attitude that implied I wasn't taking them serious would unsettle them, thus I tried to make a little fun of them."

Sakura sighed heavily. It was always the same with Sai.

"One of these days Sai… Still, I healed Shino enough so he can move again. Now we can take on those three…"

The Fairy Tail mages ignored Happy's little comment about how they were four and not three.

"Be careful guys." Gray said seriously. "Those two are really strong."

"Yeah, I can tell." Lucy agreed. "I can feel that there's more to them than meets the eye."

"Alright!" Natsu exclaimed. "Let's show them who's the boss around here!"

**XxBreakxX**

No one could say for how long the battle had already been going on. To some it seemed like mere seconds while others thought they had been fighting all day long. And although the number of fighters decreased with every step Makarov took, the intensity of the battle was as fierce as ever. The old master walked through the main street of Konoha with a pace most people would have associated with taking a stroll. However, everyone from Konoha who came anywhere near him immediately felt that the Wizard Saint was not just taking a walk. The pure magical energy that bristled around him with every step he took was just one clue. The poor shinobi who had foolishly confronted him would say that the fury in his eyes was far worse. Not that any of those were in a condition that allowed them to talk.

He could feel it. The battles of his beloved children were also coming to an end. And he felt those who had been defeated. Even Gildarts and Mirajane were going all out, a sign just how dangerous Konoha was. To think that they possessed a mage who could pose a challenge Gildarts…

Makarov shook his head. This was not the time. He had the feeling that someone very powerful was still lurking around. Was it that young boy that had taken Gildarts' arm, Maelstrom? That would be very fortunate indeed; Makarov still had to ask him where they kept Erza.

The legendary mage finally reached what appeared to be the main plaza. A huge round building stood proudly before him and Makarov was sure that this was the place where the leader of Konoha resided. The moment the old wizard took another step in the direction of the building, his danger sense screamed at him to move out of the way.

The old man dodged with a surprisingly nimble jump and easily avoided the strike of a sword that had been aimed at his neck. Not a moment later a typhoon of black and steel charged at him. Using his small figure to its fullest the master dodged the incoming strikes and was soon sure that this was more than one opponent. A small burst of magical energy erupted from him and pushed his opponents back. His guess proved to be true when Makarov saw that not one, but four enemies stood before them. All of them wore the same black cloak and white masks, only their hairstyles and the markings on the masks were different.

"Mage of Fiore. You will not go any further." One of the figures spoke in an emotionless tone. "We are the elite guard of the Hokage. You will not pass."

Makarov raised an eyebrow, his stare still cold. "Hokage you say…? Sounds like an important person. I think he should know where Erza is. I advise you to take me to him. Every other choice will have… unpleasant consequences for you."

The monotone voice of the elite guard didn't change at all at Makarov's threat. "Hokage-sama is the man who leads this village. As long as he stands, the village won't fall. Therefore we will protect Hokage-sama with our lives."

The moment Makarov wanted to reply, a new voice beat him to it.

"That won't be necessary."

Makarov's head whipped around when he heard the new voice. Despite being completely alert he hadn't sensed this new arrival approach at all. And even worse, the newcomer stood directly behind him like he had no care in the world.

The wizened master wasted no time, and immediately lashed out against the unknown man, only for the person in question to almost lazily dodge the magic enhanced punch by gracefully jumping into the air before landing on the ground without making as much as a single sound.

Makarov realized one thing from this little show. The man wasn't being cocky by choosing such an extravagant entrance. This was pure confidence. The way he had dodged had been as natural to him as breathing. No doubt, this man was easily the strongest of the black clad warriors, although his outfit slightly differed from the rest. Instead of an animal mask his face was only almost completely covered by a black cloth mask over his mouth and a metal plated headband over his left eye. His only visible eye held an almost bored expression, but Makarov was not one to be fooled by this. He could feel how the white haired man was calmly analyzing him.

"Hokage-sama, please let us handle this…" One of the men began. He was quickly interrupted by a simple dismissive wave of the newcomer.

Makarov's eyes narrowed when he heard how the masked man had addressed the white haired warrior. _"So this is the 'Hokage' they were been talking about. He certainly is a class of his own, that much is true. I cannot let my guard down against him."_

He decided to address the man who was probably the mastermind behind Erza's abduction. "So, you are the 'Hokage', right? I'm glad you decided to come out of your hiding place on your own, it saves me the trouble of looking for you."

Makarov could almost feel how the four black guards tensed as he spoke to their leader in such a disrespecting manner. Normally, Makarov was all for hospitality, but the moment one dared to touch his beloved children it was as good as a death sentence.

Kakashi calmy replied, his voice not betraying any his emotions. "Well, I wasn't really hiding, you know? After all, a clear chain of command must be established if one wants to survive in such a situation. Though, I am actually wondering one thing."

At this point his voice turned cold. "Why are you attacking us? I know that your country wasn't too fond of us since our patrols killed some of your council's scouts, but those were special circumstances. Besides that we never raised a hand against the people of Fiore."

The fury in Makarov's eyes that had calmed down a little since their little discussion began returned with full vengeance. "You never raised a hand you say…? You DARE to say something like that? Not only did one of your mages kidnap Erza, no, your despicable bunch of monsters also attacked our comrades and burned their guild to the ground!"

Kakashi blinked at that. Even his normally stoic ANBU guards looked confused. What was that old man talking about? But then a disturbing thought began to form in Kakashi's mind.

"It couldn't be… Not even HE should possess such powers. But if it truly was HIM…"

The Rokudaime turned his attention back to the guild master, his body already shifting into a battle stance.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I have to cut this short. If my assumption is correct, I'm afraid there's an even greater danger approaching the village."

Makarov narrowed his eyes. "I can assure you… the greatest danger to you right now is none other than me."

Magic began to circle around the wizened mage as he too prepared for the inevitable clash.

The battle of the masters had begun.

**XxBreakxX**

"Are the preparations complete?" A cold voice asked.

"Yes. We'll move out on your command." The man who had answered spoke without the barest hint of an emotion in his voice.

The first person nodded. "Very well. It's been a long time since we last saw our home. Deploy the troops!"

"Yes… Danzo-sama."

**XxChapter EndxX**

**XxOmake: The Green Beast ReloadedxX**

Elfman scowled. His opponent was heavily outclassing him. Despite his relatively unsuspecting build, his punches were equal to the arms of most of the beasts Elfman had access to. Unfortunately there was no contest in speed. The damn bowl cut was running circles around him – backwards even. Just what kind of magic was he using? And he was so subtle at using it that Elfman could have sworn he wasn't using any magic at all!

"_I need a plan or I'm toast! As a man I can't allow myself to lose here!"_

Then an (in his opinion) ingenious idea flashed through Elfman's head as he was busy blocking the blows the green blur was raining down upon him.

"That's it! He introduced himself as the 'Green Beast of Konoha'! He must have a beast spirit inside him that maximizes his physical powers! And if that's the case then I can…!"

With the speed of desperation Elfman's right arm shot forward and even managed to grab Lee when he was about to deliver another kick.

"Take Over!"

With the last of his strength, Elfman activated his magic, and indeed, it did work! Elfman could feel an incredible power flowing into his body. In fact, it was so powerful that Elfman was slowly getting swallowed up by it.

"W-what is thiiiiiiiiis?"

A blinding flash occurred, and when it died down, only one person could be seen.

It was Elfman, his white hair now in a perfect bowl shaped haircut, and his muscular body clad in a skintight green spandex. The horrifying creature's eyes snapped open and onlookers would have sworn later on that flames had erupted from them.

"YOUUUUUUUUTH!"

Then the creature that would later on become known as "Leeman Elfrock", an SSS-Ranked beast, took off, challenging every person in Konoha to manly/youthful competitions. In the end both the mages of Fiore and the shinobi of Konoha agreed that the war had been less evil than THAT.

**XxOmake EndxX**

**REPOST FROM SIR GODOT**


	8. The Curtain Falls I

**XxChapter 8: The Curtain Falls IxX**

"Hahahahahaha! Take this you worms! Fairy Machine Gun: Leprechaun!"

Cries of pain resounded throughout the area as the magical dust bullets of Evergreen found their targets. The sole female member of Laxus' former bodyguard team was proving to be a difficult opponent for the shinobi, since no matter how high they could jump, they couldn't fly. Unfortunately, their opponent could, and Evergreen was using this advantage for all it was worth. While continuously staying out of reach for the warriors of Konoha, she rained down her projectile magic on them mercilessly, thoroughly enjoying herself in the process.

"This is too easy." She muttered to herself, while aiming her dust projectiles at yet another flak jacket wearing warrior. "I bet Laxus could have taken down all these guys by himself."

The brunette's thoughts came to a halt when she noticed that a shadow had fallen over her. At first, she ignored it, but then she noticed something strange about the shadow.

"_Wait, I'm flying in the sky, and there are no clouds today. Where's this shadow coming from?"_

Unfortunately, Evergreen noticed this little fact a split-second too late. The moment the thought had crossed her mind, the bespectacled mage found herself assaulted by countless projectiles. Due to her attacker using the sun as cover, she couldn't get a clear view of who was attacking her, and only narrowly avoided being cut into pieces. However, more than one of the projectiles hit its mark, and sliced into the fairy's flesh, almost causing Evergreen to lose control over her wing magic and falling to her demise. Still, she couldn't stay in the air any longer, she had to escape this assault and find a way to face her attacker.

With a scowl, and slightly wincing due to her wounds, the brown haired mage landed on a nearby building where the sun would no longer blind her completely.

"Who's there?" She shouted, anger and tension evident in her voice. It irked her, who was not far from becoming an S-Class Mage that someone had snuck up on her so easily.

Evergreen heard a rustle. It almost sounded like… wings…

When the blonde saw her opponent approach she couldn't help but to feel awed. Her assailant was a blue haired beauty with a white rose in her hair. A dark blue battle kimono covered her – Evergreen couldn't deny it – gorgeous body.

And she had wings. Large, white wings, just like an angel. Her entire appearance was so overwhelming, that Evergreen didn't even notice that the wings were made from paper at first. The Fairy Tail mage's moment of surprise was short, but the long haired woman was angry at herself nonetheless. How could she have been awed by the person before her so easily, especially in the midst of battle!?

"Who are you?" Evergreen asked, her hands ready to throw her explosive dust at the winged woman that landed gracefully a few yards away from her.

The woman responded with a cool voice that betrayed none of her emotions. "My name is something only my comrades may know. To someone like you, who disrupts the peace of this village, I shall become a heavenly messenger that dispenses justice."

"Cocky, aren't we? Just because you put some paper together for wings doesn't make you an angel, you know." Despite her brave words, sweat was running down the side of Evergreen's face. She hated to admit it, but the woman before her unnerved her. She could feel that the blue haired mage was strong, as her mere presence demanded a respect Evergreen had rarely felt from anyone. Standing before her felt almost like facing Erza in battle.

She had to take her by surprise, and finish the battle before it actually started, if she wanted to win.

"Fairy Gun: Gremlin!"

Dust flew towards Konan and surrounded her, before exploding with an impressive force, but the former Akatsuki member had reacted in time by swinging her wings and flying back into the air again. At the same time, a hail of paper shuriken was released from her wings, which now raced at the still unmoving Evergreen.

As someone who used wings to fight as well, however, Evergreen had expected an attack like that. She dodged the shuriken with an impressive jump, and instinctively aimed at the spot where Konan's flight would take the blue haired woman.

"Fairy Machine Gun: Leprechaun!"

The shot of magic dust raced towards Konan, yet the former Amegakure Shinobi didn't even bat an eye.

Then, the projectiles hit their target.

At first, Evergreen was a little surprised that her attack had hit her opponent so easily, but then she allowed herself some measure of satisfaction. Apparently her opponent had been all bark and no bite. That would teach her to… dissolve into paper?

Evergreen's eyes widened when she saw the body of the blue-haired woman break down into countless sheets of paper that immediately rushed at her. The glasses wearing mage tried to distance herself from the incoming attack, but it was already too late; the paper reached her, and immediately began to wrap around her entire body, trapping her completely.

"_N-no! I have to do something!"_

Evergreen struggled valiantly, but whatever magic her opponent used, it was perfect for restraining a person. By now, the paper had even reached her head, and as it began to cover Evergreen's mouth and nose, the blonde mage realized that she might not make it out of this one alive.

"_Laxus, Freed, Bixlow…"_ Evergreen thought, as the lack of air made her world go dark. _"I'm sorry…"_

**XxBreakxX**

Thunder echoed through the empty area.

At least that was what it sounded like. The truth was, the punches of Gai and Gildarts collided with such speed and force that the noise created when fist met fist was akin to a force of nature. This was also why the area near them was deserted; no one wanted to be close to the clash of those two monsters.

"You're not bad." Gildarts said as he and his opponent separated after yet another clash. His breathing was a little faster than normal, but other than that there was no evidence of the high-speed battle he had fought so far. "I must admit, it has been a while since I had the honor of facing such a worthy opponent in battle. Shame you're the enemy."

A few yards away from the strongest mage of Fairy Tail, Gai was a little worse off than his opponent.

"Indeed," the self-proclaimed Green Beast agreed. "The Flames of Youth burn still brightly inside you, and your control over this destructive magic is just as amazing. I can't help but to admire your strength."

"However…"

The normally friendly face of Maito Gai morphed into the visage of the fierce warrior he truly was.

"No matter how much I respect your strength, I cannot allow you to threaten my home any longer."

The air around the green-clad jonin seemed to grow heavy, and Gildarts immediately strengthened his guard. His opponent was up to something… and he definitely didn't want to risk taking a blow due to surprise. One hit might be enough to tip the scales of their battle.

Gai himself took a deep breath and concentrated. He hated resorting to this technique so early in a battle, but he had to finish this quickly. Not only was the man before him extremely dangerous, Konoha itself was still in danger.

And he would not allow it to be destroyed again.

"Gate of Opening… Released."

Gildarts's eyes narrowed when his opponent continued to stand still. What was he doing?

"Gate of Healing… Released."

A gust of wind seemed to pick up around the "Green Beast", and Gildarts was shocked to see that the minor wounds his adversary had been sporting were closing up before him.

"Gate of Life… Released!"

Gai's voice reached Gildarts's ears. Not a second later, the mage was already in motion, rushing his opponent at a speed that belied his tall frame. Gildarts jumped, channeled his "Crash" magic into his right arm, and sent it flying at the black haired man.

However, while the two warriors had been evenly matched in speed before, this was no longer true now. Gai all but VANISHED from Gildarts' sight, only to reappear behind him.

"Gate of Pain…"

A vicious right punch sent Gildarts flying. The mage had only barely managed to block the attack with his prosthetic left arm, the prosthetic limb straining under the ferocity of the attack and only barely holding up.

"Released!"

While he was still flying through the air, Gildarts used his magic on the ground, sending large chunks of earth at the shinobi, who was slightly overextended from his attack and not quite able to move again just yet.

"_Got you now!"_ Gildarts thought.

The rocks approached Gai at an incredible speed, but in his state they might as well have been motionless. Fists blurred, and soon afterwards rock crumbled. Unfortunately, Gildarts had used Gai's distraction to approach the man again, immediately dashing at the man after recovering from the previous attack. There was no time to dodge this time, as a magic powered fist plowed straight into Gai's stomach. The jonin's mouth opened forcefully as the air was pushed out of his lungs from the magic powered punch. It felt as if his insides were being ruptured, and not because he was using four gates already.

Gai was sent flying from the punch, and only barely managed to recover himself while in mid-air. However, he did not have time to recover. Gildarts was already on him again, easily keeping up with Gai despite the man's empowered state and his own fake limbs.

"_This man is incredibly strong." _Gai thought while exchanging blows with Gildarts. _"Truly, to think that there were men like him in these lands… It makes me both glad and wary. I don't think there are many mages stronger than him here, but that makes stopping him all the more important. I cannot let this man destroy more of Konoha!"_

"Gate of Limit! Released! Gate of View! Released!" With determination and another surge of chakra once again filling his body and spirit, Gai's fists slowly started to overtake the exchange with Gildarts, who was taken aback by his opponent's increasing strength. While he was busy keeping up with the renewed onslaught, Gildarts absentmindedly noticed how his opponent's skin had turned red.

"_It's as if the guy's a bottomless pit of energy… how much more strength is he gonna pull out? Still, I don't think he can use much more of that magic of his, it seems to take quite a toll on his body."_

Gildarts' analysis was cut short when the mage found himself incapable of keeping up with the man's punches anymore. Gai broke through the mage's guard and landed two solid strikes to his opponent's abdomen, returning the favor from before with interest.

But Gildarts wasn't an S-Class Mage for nothing. Before the force of the blow could send him flying away like it had done with Gai, Gildarts latched onto his opponent's arms with his prosthetic hand. Gritting his teeth the mage and forced himself back onto the ground. He saw the surprised look on his opponent's face when he channeled his magic power in his right hand. With no possibility to escape, Gai immediately raised his left hand to guard against Gildarts' next strike. But it was to no avail. The blow connected and only now did Gildarts release Gai's arm from his hold.

"Haja Kensho: Itten! (Crushing Evil and Spreading Truth: Empyrean)"

The mighty blow went straight through Gai's guard and connected with his chin. The green-clad man felt his brain rattling from the impact, before the sheer force of the punch sent him spiraling upwards.

"_Damn, I'm… losing consciousness… no, I have to…"_

Gai's mind went blank as he reached the peak of his flight before he fell down again several feet away from a heavily panting Gildarts.

The strongest mage of Fairy Tail was greatly relieved that he had finally managed to take his opponent down. With a sigh he spoke to himself.

"Man, that guy was the real deal… I hope Konoha doesn't have more of beasts like him around, he drained me quite a bit."

The red haired man turned around, trying to discover the locations of the still ongoing battles by the most obvious signs.

"I guess the old man found the leader of Konoha. I almost pity the guy… Well, I better get moving, some people might need help."

Gidarts started moving in the direction opposite of his fallen opponent, but after taking a few steps, he froze when he felt an incredible amount of fighting spirit being directed at him from behind. The eyes of Gildarts widened as he spun around quickly. There was no way that…

But it was true. Maito Gai was standing once more, his eyes shadowed as his head was held low. The jonin's clothes were tattered and torn, and more than one wound was visible on his body. When the man raised his head and looked at Gildarts, the mage noticed something unsettling about him.

"_His eyes weren't focused for a moment. Are you telling me he forced himself to stand up while being unconscious? That level of determination is getting ridiculous!"_

Gai didn't say anything as he regarded his opponent with a cool gaze. He hated to admit it, but for a few moments he had lost consciousness. In most cases, that would have been his defeat, but in this situation, he couldn't afford to lose due to something like this, not while his body had not yet burned out.

"Gildarts Clive." Gai said with a calm, solemn voice that was quite rare to be heard from the taijutsu master. "You are truly an admirable opponent. I shall remember your name as long as I live."

The Green Beast of Konoha then proceeded to cross his arms in front of his chest. His muscles were bulging as if under a huge strain, which was true to an extent.

"I shall face you with all my power. Prepare yourself, Gildarts Clive of Fairy Tail! This is the strength I acquired through my training! This power shall protect Konoha!"

"Gate of Wonder! Released!"

A surge of power coursed through Gai's battered body as the seventh of the eight Celestial Gates was released. To onlookers it appeared as if Gai was covered in a green aura that caused the gravel on the ground to be blown away.

Gildarts was taken aback a little by the shinobi's determination. For a member of a dark guild to hold such feelings for his guild… were they truly that different? Gildarts immediately banished these thoughts. He couldn't afford to get distracted now. His opponent seemed to be planning something, and the best thing would be to stop his plan from even coming to fruition.

As Gildarts was about to attack Gai, intent on finishing him off, the jonin's mind was going over his course of action.

"_I don't have much strength left. Even with the 7th Gate, I can't move as fast as before, my muscles are barely holding up as it is. I'll have to finish this with the next attack."_

Gai raised his right arm into the air, his hand taking the form of a knifehand. The green aura around Gai seemed to swirl before settling down and focusing on the jonin's right arm, blazing strongly.

Gildarts suspected that his opponent was concentrating his power for a devastating close range attack, as his opponent so far had never demonstrated a single ranged attack. He was most likely to prepare his strike and then charge at him to finish him off with one swift strike. Like he was going to let that happen.

"CRASH!"

With a shout, Gildarts launched a wave of his magic at Gai. A pure wave of magic flew at Gai, ripping the earth asunder as it approached its target. Whoever was caught in this blast was guaranteed not to walk away unharmed.

But just before the wave of magic reached Gai, the Green Beast of Konoha swung down his right arm with all his might, a green aura following the strike.

"GOZENRYU! (Midnight Dragon)"

**XxBreakxX**

At another location in the village, Tsunade's eyes snapped towards the huge surge of chakra she had just felt. She had an idea who had caused it, and her eyes narrowed at the thought.

"_So one of these guys managed to push Gai that far? That's not good, even if he wins now, the damage he;ll suffer once his energy runs out will be tremendous, not to mention that there are hardly any healers to take care of him."_

Tsunade's thoughts were interrupted when a figure dashed at her with raised fists.

"You really shouldn't space out like that!"

With a graceful jump, the former Hokage dodged Mirajane's attack, causing the younger woman to scowl. Her opponent was good, even without her strength and speed she moved with a fluidity that only veterans possessed.

"_How the hell is that possible, she doesn't look much older than me! Is she one of those monsters like Gildarts?"_

That thought sent a shiver down Mirajane's spine. While she had unlocked her Take Over magic again, she was not yet on the level again she had once possessed. She was wasting too much time with one opponent.

However, the same was true for Tsunade. Even though she had recovered from her coma not long after Kakashi had been made Hokage, the wounds she had suffered in the battle against Pain had never completely healed. She could no longer fight on the level that had once made her be feared as a member of the legendary Sannin of Konoha. If the battle continued to be dragged out like this, there was a good chance she would simply lose due to her failing stamina. Luckily for her, her opponent didn't know that and as long as she kept the façade up that she wasn't operating on a short time frame, she could exert pressure on the mage girl.

The two fighters observed each other carefully. Strength-wise, they were about the same, but Tsunade was faster and could heal herself. However, unlike her opponent she couldn't fly or shoot energy projectiles. Both sides knew that they were almost evenly matched and neither of them liked the thought.

For the two women, it seemed as if a strange silence settled over their battlefield, despite the sounds of fighting filling the air around them. Neither of them even dared to blink. A moment of carelessness could spell the end for them. Then, as if reacting to a start signal only the two had been able to perceive, the two rushed at each other.

Just as their fists were about to connect, a white light filled their battlefield.

**XxBreakxX**

Gildarts blinked.

What had happened? Where was he? And why was his entire body hurting?

Slowly, the memories began to come back. He had been fighting this strange green-clad man. The battle had been almost finished, he had sent a wave of his unrestrained Crash magic at him and then…

"I see you are still conscious. You truly are a powerful warrior."

Gildarts slowly raised his head from the ground to look at the source of the voice he had just heard.

Before him stood Maito Guy, the green aura he had summoned still blazing strongly around him.

"To think that there was one who could withstand my Gozenryu to such an extent… I didn't think I'd ever meet a man like you in these lands."

"What did you hit me with?" Gildarts managed to say. His entire body was hurting and he noticed that his artificial left arm was broken. "My Crash magic should have broken down whatever attack you could have used."

Gai shook his head. "There was nothing to break down. Gozenryu is a strike so fast, it creates a vacuum wave that can crush pretty much anything. There was no magic or chakra involved. It was simply the fastest strike I could muster."

Gildarts gave a slight chuckle, which was accompanied by a little blood that came up with a cough. "You are really one strange beast…"

With these words Gildarts Clive, the strongest mage of Fairy Tail, finally fell unconscious, his energy spent.

Maito Gai regarded his fallen opponent for a moment before moving towards him. However, before he could reach the unconscious man, cards were launched at his feet like Shuriken. The Jonin jumped backwards a little and evaded the attack relatively easily. His searching eyes soon found the source of the attack.

A young brown-haired woman, obviously drained from fighting, had thrown the cards from between two buildings that were still standing. Gai could see that the girl was far from her top condition, but her eyes were burning with anger and determination to protect the man that was lying on the ground.

The female mage quickly crossed the distance between them and positioned herself between Gai and Gildarts, clearly protecting her fellow mage.

"I won't let you hurt him anymore!"

"…" Gai was silent, his white eyes staring intently at the girl before him. Somehow he got the feeling that this was more than a comrade protecting another. No, the ferociousness this girl displayed to protect the man behind her reminded Gai of a lioness protecting her children. In this case the lioness was already badly hurt and about to face an elephant though. And yet her eyes showed no hesitation.

"… Take this man and go. I have no intention of killing a defeated man or harming an injured woman."

With a mighty leap Gai left the battle field. Sparing them might prove to be a mistake. The mages of Fiore and Konoha were at war after all, and there was no guarantee the man wouldn't come back and hurt Gai's comrades then. And yet… Gai still held unto his morals. When men crossed fists they were sometimes able to understand each other, and Gai had crossed fists with many people, so was it any surprise he would be able to see that his opponent was a good man?

It might have been the wrong choice, but Gai would see it through to the end. His thoughts were cut short when suddenly a blinding white light entered his vision.

**XxBreakxX**

While all across the village the battles were reaching their climaxes, Makarov and Kakashi were both caught up in their own deadly dance. The area before the Hokage Tower was devastated by now and nothing but a wasteland of craters and debris. Magic and Chakra clashed, but the fighters remained mostly untouched. This was how Makarov realized just how dangerous his enemy was.

"_When two fighters of the same level clash it will be over in but an instant."_ The third Master of Fairy Tail thought as he dodged another barrage of multiplying knives. _"For someone so young to reach this level of skill, it reminds me a lot of Gildarts, and this is exactly why…"_

With a roar Makarov jumped over the knives, magical runes flaring to life around him as he prepared his counter attack. "I CANNOT LOSE HERE!"

Several beams of light shot at Kakashi, their speed and angle making it harder and harder to dodge. When one of the beams hit Kakashi square in the chest Makarov was a little surprised that his opponent had suddenly been hit so easily. His surprise disappeared when he saw the image of the Hokage turn into partially scorched log.

"_I don't even want to know where that came from." _Makarov thought as he searched for his opponent, expecting some kind of retaliation attack. However, to his surprise his opponent only stood a few yards away on Makarov's right side.

"You're strong, Master Makarov. If our battle continues this way, I'll lose. So I'll have to stop holding back."

With these words, Kakashi pulled up his headband and revealed his scar covered left eye. However, that wasn't all too it. The guild master couldn't see it clearly, but some kind of symbol had been painted across the eye-lid. Makarov immediately tensed at the sight. He had seen more than one mage with eye-magic, and if his opponent possessed one that apparently had to be sealed in some kind of manner it certainly spelled trouble.

Makarov's worries were soon proven to be correct when his opponent quietly muttered the word "Release". The pressure he had felt from the man easily doubled, and had Makarov not been prepared for something like this, he might even have been stunned.

When the Hokage opened his left eye, the old wizard found himself staring at a blood-red eye with a black pinwheel like pattern, and the next thing Makarov knew was that his world seemed to shift in an unnatural way.

"Ugh…!"

It was only thanks to his experience and knowledge of Mystogan's illusion magic that Makarov realized what was happening to him quickly enough to break his opponent's attack and dodge the swipe of a knife by a hair's breadth.

"So your eye can cast illusions… While troublesome, it can easily be countered by not looking in your eyes." Makarov stated after regaining his stance. His eyes narrowed as he regarded the man in front of him. "This has gone on long enough."

The moment Makarov had spoken these words, a massive amount of energy began to gather between the old master's hands. Kakashi was a little shocked at this. He had known the man was powerful, but this much energy was on a level far above what Kakashi himself was capable of.

"You have to the count of three to surrender. If your guild does not cease fighting, I will end this war myself. One." Makarov's voice was calm and yet spoke of the fury that was kept at bay.

Kakashi's eyes narrowed at the man. "An attack of that magnitude would annihilate not only a large part of Konoha but of your own mages as well. Are you telling me you will fire an attack that would hurt both sides?"

Makarov's reply sent a chill down Kakashi's spine. "Two. And how come you think my magic will hurt anyone I consider a friend?"

The voice Makarov had used to speak set off all figurative alarm bells Kakashi possessed. This wasn't a bluff, Makarov's magic would definitely not harm any of the mages fighting against Konoha.

"_I have to stop the attack!"_

But whatever action Kakashi wanted to take was cut short when Makarov's voice rang across the battlefield with the utmost finality.

"Three. Fairy Law."

And the world was bathed in white.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**XxOmake: An Alternate FinishxX**

Gai and Gildarts stared each other off. Neither was giving and inch, and both were tiring out. Guy would have to open the Eight Gates if he wanted to defeat this opponent, but no… This was a challenge of the highest level, and he would treat it as such!

With a quick dash, Guy tackled Gildarts, taking his feet out from right under him, causing him to land on his back with a slight "oomph". As Gildarts started to get up, he saw one of the most disturbing things ever.

Head raised high, Guy's teeth sparkled as a goofy grin spread across his face.

"If I can't do 100 pushups in 5 seconds, its Cossack Dance Time!" He exclaimed before slamming his head right into Gildarts' chest.

0.00: 1

Like a blur, Guy began rapidly slamming his face into Gildarts' chest while the rest of his body moved as if performing a standard pushup.

2.50: 12

Guy flipped his hair back, sweat glistening across his grinning face. He quickly resumed his challenge. As each successful pushup landed, a crater started forming under Gildarts, getting bigger with each collision.

3.80: 23

Taking another break, Guy's eyes sparkled as he made a declaration. "Don't lose to yourself!"

5.00: 100!

Guy jumped in the air and raised his arms. "VICTORY!" He exclaimed before picking up Gildarts' limp body and tossing it into the air.

"Leaf Style: Youth Exercise!" He cried as he began spinning like a top, going so fast that his figure blurred. Dragging his foot across the ground during, a fire lit and spread around his being. Eventually, Guy stopped and sent his blazing foot into Gildarts' falling body, colliding with such force that the man flew out of the village, becoming nothing but a sparkle in the sky.

"YOSH!" Guy yelled, pointing a thumbs up to the sky. He had won, no Cossack Dance Time necessary.

**XxOmake EndxX**

**REPOST FROM SIR GODOT (EXCEPT OMAKE)**


	9. The Curtain Falls II

**XxThe Curtain Falls IIxX**

The light that covered the village turned battlefield was stunning. Only the members of Fairy Tail recognized it immediately. It was centered around the Hokage Tower, as many of the shinobi noted. It was an explosion of magical energy with more power and purpose than any spell they had seen before it. The effects of this technique were well known to most mages. An ally would feel naught but warmth from the light, and the encouragement that their enemy would be crushed by the caster. An enemy would feel nothing but despair, suffering under the pressure of the attack's sheer magic power even before they were actually hit.

This was one of Fairy Tail's Three Great Magics, Fairy Law.

Makarov had closed his eyes in finality, waiting for his spell to run its course. This was the end. The Dark Guild of Konoha would suffer for their transgressions against his kin, and the magic world would doubtlessly be a better place after their defeat and imprisonment. The Hokage's guards had already been burnt to a near crisp, as they had been the closest individuals. Some of the buildings in the immediate area were becoming charred as well, but as previously noted, Fairy Law was a spell of purpose. Makarov's purpose was the defeat of his enemies, not the wanton destruction of all architecture in the area.

But then, not more than a few seconds after its activation, the light began to dim. Makarov noticed this immediately. The magic power he was emanating was slowly concentrating around one point, still going strong but not against its intended targets. The area of effect had diminished considerably, and Makarov, for all his wisdom, couldn't tell why. Fairy Law was an almighty spell, what could counter it even after being cast? The Guild Master quickly opened his eyes again, looking straight towards where he felt his magic power being drawn to. He had to squint, but he most definitely saw it.

A small, black vortex was drawing in the entirety of Fairy Law. Soon, the light was completely gone, and the hole closed up. Makarov was flabbergasted. What had happened to his spell, and who was responsible for it? His answer was immediate, and accompanied by heavy panting. Makarov's eyes widened at the sight.

His clothes charred, Kakashi nevertheless stood firm, only his left eye open, having finished the greatest technique of his Sharingan. He was exhausted, but he had done it. And Makarov was, for the first time in his life, confronted with the unthinkable: Fairy Law had been stopped.

"What have you done? What was that vortex?" The Guild Master questioned incredulously.

"Kamui. (Divine Authority)" Kakashi answered between his breaths of exhaustion. It was at this point that Makarov noticed the changed form of Kakashi's Sharingan. Instead of the usual three tomoe pinwheel, there was now a more pronounced point to each of its three quadrants.

Makarov had been under the impression that the Sharingan only caused illusions. This was far beyond his calculations. "What was that spell?"

"That was no spell." A different voice answered. "That was a space-time ninjutsu of the highest caliber, accessible by only that man."

Kakashi looked at the newcomer warily. "Danzo… Why are you here?"

The now identified Danzo calmly entered the combatants' view. He was an old man, at the ripe age of 72, yet his looks betrayed his combat prowess. With his bandaged eye and limp arm tucked into his robe, he didn't exude much danger. One who assumed that would be wrong and most likely soon dead after making that mistake.

"What's the issue, Kakashi?" Danzo asked in reply. "While I may not have been deemed appropriate for the position of Hokage, I am more than capable of defending my village as if I WERE such. The Uzumaki child isn't here this time. It's up to us to drive out these invaders." He explained.

Kakashi, still panting, merely nodded. This would help tremendously.

"Who are you?" Makarov asked, no, demanded of the newcomer. He could tell this man's appearance belied his ability, and he didn't want to deal with two skilled fighters teaming up against him if he could avoid it.

Danzo focused his visible eye on the Wizard Saint. "I am Shimura Danzo, shinobi of Konoha. But what is your name, mage?"

"Makarov Dreyar, Master of Fairy Tail." Makarov answered; then paused. "You people speak strangely. Are you truly mages?" He inquired.

Kakashi stepped forward, addressing Danzo. "That's irrelevant. We need to finish this fast. The border forces must be having trouble."

**XxBreakxX**

A generic mage from the council dove at Yamato. With a few quick hand signs, wooden branches grew forth from the earth and wrapped the man up. One kunai later, and the threat was gone. Then, without warning, a presence made itself known directly behind him.

_"Fast!"_ Yamato thought while hastily ducking under his new opponents punch. He turned and lashed out with a retaliatory kick, but the assailant was already gone. He was immediately forced to block a punch coming from another direction. Finally getting some distance, Yamato sized up enemy.

He was a decently tall man with short black hair and wore a striped red variation of the standard Magic Council uniform. His most striking feature however was the peculiar scar across the upper-left side of his face.

"You're no foot soldier, I assume." Yamato said.

"I'm leading the attack on the outer walls. I go by Mest on missions. My I ask who you are?"

Yamato chuckled. "I lead the defense of the outer walls. I go by Yamato on missions."

They paused for a beat, listening to the sounds of battle around them. "Mest" was the first to speak up. "You won't last like that, you know that, right?"

Yamato frowned at the statement.

"You are a single dark guild, being preyed upon by the full might of the magic council along with a coalition of many accomplished guilds. Fairy Tail isn't big on killing, but the council has no qualms about snuffing out evil. I'd suggest you forfeit."

"Ha!" Yamato barked out. "Do you understand what you're asking me? As an ANBU commander, the mission supersedes all else. Your life, your subordinates lives, all mean nothing compared to the safety of the village. We will fight, and if we die, we die with honor. Now, are we starting or not?" Yamato finished, done with his speech.

They engaged in hand-to-hand combat. Yamato quickly realized that Mest wasn't much of a direct fighter. The man didn't really hit that hard, and he didn't seem to be using any techniques. His speed though, was insane. Yamato couldn't tell if it was a Shunshin (Body Flicker), or a teleportation spell of his. He didn't have his senpai's Sharingan, after all. Regardless though, he knew what course of action to take.

Stop him from moving.

"Mokuton: Mokusatsu Shibari no Jutsu! (Wooden Binding)" Yamato called as the fingers on his right hand became thin tendrils of wood that flew towards Mest.

Mest dodged skillfully, almost seeming to warp around the field as the wood chased him down. When one of the tendrils got a little too close for his comfort, he made a decent leap backwards. That was the opening Yamato needed. Slamming his free hand into the ground, Yamato called out his next utsu.

"Mokuton: Mokujoheki! (Wood Locking Wall)" From behind Mest, large beams of wood came from the ground and stretched over him like a dome. Soon, the technique completed, and there was just a dome of wood standing where Mest was. Retracting his tendrils, Yamato then slammed his two hands together. The dome exploded in a shower of dust and splinters.

"Ah!" A voice cried in pain. Yamato looked towards the source and saw Mest crouched on a tree branch across from him, donning nothing but a few splinters.

_"He was fast enough to escape the explosion as it happened?"_ Yamato thought in disbelief.

Mest caught his breath before smirking at Yamato. "I can't be caught." He said smugly.

That was the only verification Yamato needed. It wasn't a speed technique, it was teleportation! "That's some high level utsu there, Mest." Yamato praised.

"It serves its purpose." He responded._ "Jutsu? Whatever… Lahar was right. This guy is good."_ He thought.

Around them, the battle was still raging. The shinobi were fighting valiantly, but were slowly being overrun. Jonin like Genma, Aoba, and Raidou had no problem staying alive, but the bulk of their chunin forces were waning. Mest gave Yamato a look that said "I told you so."

A little away from Mest and Yamato, Ren Akatsuki was throwing around wind blasts like they were candy. He was one of the Trimens of Blue Pegasus, donning an unbuttoned blue suit. Multiple chunin jumped into the air towards Ren, kunai drawn.

"Not good enough!" Ren taunted, taking a crouched pose, his arms extended. "Arial Phose!" He cried, spinning his arms and creating a large cyclone that tore the shinobi up. After the dust from his attack subsided, Ren noticed something strange. On the ground, there was a peculiar looking wool doll, maybe one of the mages he had just beat had been holding it. He walked up to it and saw a tag on it that said "Curse". There was a kunai knife next to the doll as well.

"Well, that isn't creepy…"

He leaned down and touched it, but then suddenly froze in place.

"Shinten Kugutsu Juin no Jutsu. (Mind-Body Switch Curse Doll)"

And with those words, Ren found himself looking at… himself. It was strange. He noticed he was being HELD in the air. The "Ren" he was looking at gave him an evil smirk and dropped him. The imposter picked up the kunai and tucked it into his shirt then turned to leave. It took him a second, but Ren figured it out.

_"It was a trap! I got sucked into the doll!"_ He thought in panic. He saw Eve walk up to his imposter, but could do nothing about it. The shorter, blonde-haired boy was caught completely off guard when "Ren" stabbed him in the gut with a kunai and left him bleeding on the ground. And to make things worse, suddenly multiple masked shinobi burst onto the battlefield from the woods.

**XxBreakxX**

"Hibiki-san, what's the situation?" Lahar asked the man beside him.

"Things are going well in the forest, but inside the "village" it's a bit complicated." Hibiki answered. He was an overly handsome man with wild, light-brown hair. In front of him were multiple screens showcasing the fights happening across the battlefield.

"Fairy Tail is in the village, are they losing?" Lahar asked.

Hibiki shook his head. "Not particularly. Losses have been for the most part even, but Gildarts, Gazille, and Elfman are down."

"Gildarts is down? I'd heard so many stories about him I didn't think it was possible."

"Well, from what I can see though his opponent doesn't look like he's ready for another fight either." Just then, one of his screens started flashing red and beeping. "What?!" He yelled in shock.

Lahar got closer to follow the imagery along with Hibiki. "I can't tell what these bars mean. What's wrong?"

"I have a warning alarm that goes off every time a Blue Pegasus guild member is substantially hurt. Eve's alarm just went off. Something's wrong in the forest!"

**XxBreakxX**

Mest stared in shock as new shinobi entered the battle, beginning to turn the tides. "What the hell is that?" He yelled. "Reinforcements?" He was so caught up in his surprise, he didn't notice the same look being mirrored on Yamato's face as well.

"Those masks…" Yamato thought to himself before a ninja landed beside him. He was in all black, with a mask that all of his face other than the mouth and nose. In place of his eyes were round lenses.

"It's been a while, Tenzo." The man greeted.

"Torune!" Yamato responded in surprise. "Are you here on Danzo's orders?"

He nodded. "Danzo-sama has sent us to aid in the defense of the village's perimeter."

"I assume Fu is here as well then?" Yamato questioned.

"He's already infiltrated them. Other ANBU have…" Torune was cut off as a mage jumped at him from behind. Quickly taking off one of his gloves, revealing a sickly purple hand, he caught the man by his throat.

Mest watched in horror as the man started to turn purple like the man's hand, screaming in agony as the color spread across his body. Eventually, the man went limp, and Torune dropped him.

"No matter how many times I see you do that, it never gets any easier to stomach…" Yamato remarked.

"Come, we must push them back!" Torune yelled.

Mest prepared himself for what he knew would be a much harder fight this time…

**XxBreakxX**

Danzo smirked. "I believe Yamato-taicho will be just fine. Let's dispose of this man."

"Futon: Shinku Taigyoku! (Wind Syle: Giant Vacuum Bullet)" He yelled while releasing a large ball of wind at Makarov.

"Raiton: Gian! (Lightning Syle: False Darkness)" Kakashi called, joining in by firing a massive bolt of lightning.

Eyes widening, Makarov quickly took action. Making three hand seals completely foreign to the shinobi present, Makarov initiated his defense.

"Sandai Bogyo Mahojin: Sanchushin! (Maximum Defense Seal: Three Pillared God)"

A purple ring made of intricate seals formed around Makarov before three pillars of light sprung forth. The pillars flashed brightly and blocked the incoming attacks. The resulting explosion of the clash created a massive dust cloud that hindered Makarov's vision. The Guild Master then quickly ducked when he heard a faint chirping sound from behind him; just in time to see a hand covered in lightning narrowly piercing the space above his head.

His left hand still extended, Kakashi pointed his right at Makarov. That hand began to coat itself in lightning as well before a wolf of electricity bounded forth at Makarov.

"Raiju Hashiri no Jutsu! (Lightning Beast Dash)"

Makarov used his Titan magic to increase his fist to a ridiculous size before batting the lightning hound aside, his increased toughness withstanding the electricity without too much trouble. Because of this rapid exchange, Makarov was woefully unprepared for Danzo's turn.

"Futon: Shinku Renpa! (Vacuum Wave Blades)"

The blades of wind scraped painfully against Makarov's back, causing him to grunt in pain. The force of the winds cleared out any remaining dust on the battlefield, revealing all three combatants to each other.

_"How could they see me in the dust?"_ Makarov wondered to himself. He then noticed that the bandages around Danzo's right eye were lowered, revealing the same type of red eye Kakashi had. "What kind of magic do those eyes hold?"

"That depends on the user." Danzo surprisingly answered. "This 'magic' cannot be learned. It is a hereditary gift of the Uchiha clan. You will never figure out all of its uses in this fight, let alone counters to them."

Kakashi stepped forward. "I don't know what your business is with us, but take this as a final warning. Withdraw your forces. Now. I don't think either of us like the amount of blood already shed."

"You speak of unnecessary bloodshed? How dare you!" Makarov yelled. "You have no qualms about killing!"

Danzo spoke up. "You know nothing of our way of life. 'Magic', as you call it, secures money and territory. Both solidify the safety and longevity of our village and its citizens. If lives are to be taken to reach this end, then so be it."

"You're not helping our case here, Danzo…" Kakashi complained, mostly to himself though.

"You speak of citizens, but I saw none." Makarov pointed out.

Kakashi chuckled. "As the leader of this village, I'm insulted that you would think that I hadn't created an evacuation plan in case of an invasion. Especially after last year…" He added that last part under his breath.

"While you talk about securing the safety of this 'village', you act as if killing is just a means to an end. Regardless of any underlying purposes, the idea that ruining the lives another to promote the profit of your own is no different than that of a common dark guild." Makarov scolded.

Danzo let out a dramatic sigh. "You just don't get it… It matters not. The fact of the matter is that you need to leave. You are a worthy opponent, I admit that much, but my patience is running short."

Danzo pulled his limp arm out of its cast, revealing the metal casing around it. "Kakashi, I'll need you to occupy this man while I break the seal on my arm." He instructed.

"I'm the Hokage here, aren't I?" He questioned jokingly, to which he got a pointed glare. "Okay, I get it, I get it!"

Throughout their exchange, Makarov was strategizing for his upcoming battle with Kakashi. That Danzo fellow was up to something, and he would rather not find out what. Kakashi needed to go down fast, and Danzo would follow_. "Using __Titan__ is too risky. I could tell that that dimension warping magic needs very precise aim, judging by how small the rift was. I'm a small, mobile target the way I am, and getting bigger would be suicide."_

Makarov prepared for what could possibly be the toughest battle of his career.

**XxBreakxX**

Mest knelt down low, coughing up some blood. Above him stood an injured Yamato, looking down at him and breathing heavily as well. No words were exchanged, but it was clear Yamato had won. Around them, battle still raged, although to a lesser degree than before. With the assistance of Danzo's ROOT, the tide was surely turning to the favor of the shinobi. Mest tried standing, but found himself unable to do so.

"Impossible..." Mest thought to himself. "All of these mages... beaten by a dark guild?"

"You underestimated the Will of Fire, Mest." Yamato told him, still breathing heavily. "To protect our village, and the next generation, we will never fall."

Mest thought the battle was over, but one man was about to change that.

**XxBreakxX**

Hibiki and Lahar meanwhile were in a state of near panic, only their professionalism keeping their composure intact.

"How can we be losing?!" Lahar exclaimed. "There are so many of us! And with Blue Pegasus alongside us, how can this be happening?"

"I can tell you how right now." Hibiki said, catching Lahar's attention. "They work better together. They're a well-oiled machine, tempered through years and years of combat. They are far more used to this kind of thing than we are. We lack experience. Pure strength can only get you so far."

"I disagree." A deep voice sounded out behind the two. Turning, they saw their new arrival.

He was a tall, muscular and pale-skinned man with straight black hair, which was slicked back and gathered on the back of his head, where it was kept in a bun, hidden away by a white cloth with ruffled edges secured by a similarly colored strip of cloth. He wore a blue set of armor that only covered his upper torso and arms, leaving the entire mid-lower torso bare. He also had a very baggy pair of dark pants tied with an orange sash. His eyes were slanted with dotted tattoos under each of them. His most striking feature however was the quite angry look he had on his face.

"You're..." Lahar started.

"Bacchus." Hibiki finished. "The Drunk Falcon of Quatro Kerberos."

"I'm here to end this." He said darkly. "My guild's honor demands it. MY honor demands it." He then took a deep gulp of alcohol from the gourd he kept tied to his sash. "I wasn't there when my comrades were attacked. I can feel their spirits crying out for retribution. My soul is shaking already. Not in excitement, but anger! Don't try and stop me!" He finished before walking into the woods, leaving Lahar and Hibiki to ponder his appearance.

Hibiki sighed. "He really might kill them you know. If anyone has a personal stake in this, it's him."

"I'm well aware, but we'll take all the help we can get."

**XxBreakxX**

"Ren" was standing over Eve's fallen body, readying his kunai for a final strike. But before he could do so, he was slapped. Slapped so hard he felt his neck almost snap. Also, normally wouldn't fly just because of a slap, yet he did, and quite far so. He hit the ground, and because the attack had caught him completely unprepared, lost his consciousness.

The spike of power was felt across the field, but only to the more sensitive combatants.

"That smells like trouble." One of the shinobi said lazily, standing over a fallen mage.

"I wouldn't worry about it, Genma." Another shinobi told him.

"It pays to be cautious, Raido. We should check it out."

Genma sighed, toying with the stick in his mouth. "Aoba's right. If a heavy hitter just showed up, we need to stop him."

"If you say so." Raido conceded.

"Let's go then." Aoba said, jumping towards the source of magic they felt. The others followed suit soon after.

**XxBreakxX**

Down. Down. Down again.

That was the basic premise for a chunin's encounter with the Drunk Falcon. Even if ROOT members were higher end chunin than most on the field, even then they couldn't do much against that man. The way Bacchus would sway around the battlefield made him almost impossible to pin down, and the force of his palm strikes was deceptively hard. However, after felling several enemies, Bacchus suddenly found his vision obscured.

"Sanzengarasu no Jutsu! (Scattered Crow Swarm)"

Crows, tons and tons of them, flew all over the immediate area around Bacchus. Confused, Bacchus began to lash out, trying to hit the crows. As he hit one, his hand went through it and it split into two different crows.

"What the hell?" The man questioned. He was so surprised that he narrowly missed the next incoming attack. At the last second, Bacchus caught a slight glimpse of a man's face among the crows. But before he could do anything, a sword as black as the crows sped forth, intended to stab him. Bacchus had trouble judging the distance or length of the sword due to the ever expanding flock of crows. By taking advantage of his sheer flexibility, the mage of Quatro Kerberos managed to lean out of the way just in time. The sword scraped across the left side of his torso, leaving a large yet shallow cut, but Bacchus was able to avoid impalement.

Quickly reacting, Bacchus swung his right palm laterally towards the sword.

"Sui-Hikasho: Gekka! (Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm: Under Moonlight)" He called, gathering a large amount of magic power in his palm. Upon collision with the sword, the force expanded, creating a circle area of effect. The entire sword shattered into countless pieces from the contact. Bacchus wasn't done yet, though. Using the force of his previous strike, he continued moving until he was spinning quite fast.

"Sui-Hikasho: Kazekka! (Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm: Under Wind)"

Rather than physically attacking the crows, he expended the magic in his palms outwards, and then used his incredible speed to create a whirlwind of sorts. The crows dispersed outwards, revealing none other than Raido, covered in a dark black cloak, holding the hilt of a broken blade. Up in a tree a distance away, Bacchus also noticed Aoba, crows surrounding him as he held a handsign.

Raido stared at his sword in surprise. _"He broke Kokuto?"_ He didn't have much time to think on it, as Bacchus dashed straight towards him with insane speed. Trying to be preemptive, Raido lashed out with a kick, but Bacchus avoided it easily. The Falcon's palm went straight across the special Jonin's face, causing him to spit up blood as he stumbled backwards. Thinking fast, Raido took of his cloak and threw it in Bacchus' line of sight.

"Aoba!" He yelled.

"On it!" The man in question responded. He pointed at Bacchus and his crows flew right at him.

"Karasu Shuriken no Jutsu! (Crow Shuriken)"

In midflight, the crows morphed into shuriken and flew straight through Raido's cloak. On the other end, Bacchus couldn't predict the specifics of the incoming attack because of his obstructed vision. That wasn't really a problem for him though. He just jumped as high as he could, leaving the shroud of the cloak and avoiding the attack completely.

This small exchange took no more than ten seconds. But in his midair position, Bacchus was sorely unprepared for a third arrival. A searing pain shot through his shoulder, and before he knew it, something was flying off into the distance in front of him. It was so sudden it actually took him a second to realize something had been shot through him. Following the path of the item that had pierced him, he was a little surprised when he saw a short, thin stick impale a tree in the distance.

"How the hell did that twig go through my shoulder?" He thought in confusion.

Landing as gracefully as he could with his injury, he took note of the new shinobi. It was Genma, with another one of those sticks in his mouth. Bacchus didn't have much time to ponder his arrival though, as more crow shuriken started depositing themselves across the clearing. Despite the abilities of the two shinobi in front of him, Bacchus viewed Aoba as the most vital threat on the field. The mage had always had a range problem, and with multiple enemies it was even worse if exploited. He made a mad dash for the tree Aoba was perched atop, but Raido was in his way. Pulling out a tanto, Raido engaged Bacchus in close combat. After a few seconds of getting pounded, Genma joined in, trying to help Raido pin Bacchus down. His moves were just too... erratic. He would lean at weird times, contort into awkward position, and attack infrequently. Eventually, Bacchus found an opening and struck out with each of his hands, blowing both shinobi a good distance back.

Aoba now had a chance to keep peppering the man with shuriken. He had been forced to stand by while the earlier fight was happening as he hadn't wanted to risk hitting Genma or Raido. But all of a sudden, Bacchus just seemed to disappear. Then, the tree beneath Aoba began to fall. In just an instant, Bacchus had closed in and subsequently battered the base of the tree until it started to collapse. Quickly jumping down, Aoba moved to regroup with his fellow shinobi. He wanted nothing to do with that man in close quarters.

Bacchus turned from his position near the downed tree and gave the three a mean look. "Who are you people?"

As the question gave them an opportunity to catch their breath and come up with a new plan, the three shinobi actually answered the question directed at them.

"Yamashiro Aoba."

"Namiashi Raido."

"Shiranui Genma."

Bacchus gave them a grin. "You guys are tough. You might be evil bastards, but my soul is shaking, dammit! I'm Bacchus, and you guys are going down!" He yelled before dashing towards the group.

All three shinobi prepared for Bacchus' incoming attack, but it was from quick enough. In an instant Genma, Raido, and Aoba were hit in three different spots and sent flying into different directions. Hard. As they flew through the air, they managed to catch a sneer on Bacchus' face. Aoba was the first to right himself and skidded to a stop.

"Formation Beta!" He yelled, to which his comrades merely nodded. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu! (Fire Style: Grand Fireball)" Aoba called, sending a huge ball of flames towards Bacchus.

"Ha! It's useless!" The Falcon mocked as he performed another Kazekka. The wind strengthened the flames, but diverted them from his course. It was just a distraction though, as Raido had just finished the hand seals for his next Jutsu.

"Suiton: Suijinheki! (Water Style: Water Encampment Wall)" Raido called, summoning a large wall of water around Bacchus' position.

Bacchus looked around his "prison" in amusement. "Is that all?" He questioned before raising his left foot high. With a rough grunt, he slammed his foot to the ground, causing the ground to crack and stalagmites to rise. The wall of water quickly dissolved into a big puddle that covered a good portion of the field. But despite his prowess, Bacchus was sorely unprepared for the final stage of Formation Beta.

Across the way, Genma had one of his hands touching the wet ground, and another raised to the sky, crackling with electricity. "Raiton: Hiraishin! (Lightning Style: Lightning Rod!)"

The lightning traveled through his body and dispersed itself into the water on the ground, electrifying the whole field, Bacchus included.

The pain was bad, yes, but what really put Bacchus in a bind was the way his muscles weren't responding properly. After the pain of being electrocuted subsided, his body wasn't up to moving at high speeds yet. His muscles were constantly expanding and contracting under the aftereffects of being zapped, and it left him quite vulnerable. Raido jumped in to engage Bacchus in close combat, since he was the most adept of his squad at doing so. The mage was struggling to maintain his style under the assault. His body was so locked up that he couldn't bend and contort the way he usually did when fighting and the hole in his right shoulder was aching as well, lessening the use of his dominant arm even further. Then Aoba started throwing more crow shuriken at him, making things even harder to react to. Bacchus was beginning to take cuts all over the place, and was just barely dodging Raido's assault at the same time. If speed and flexibility were inaccessible for him, he would try something else then.

Power.

"Sui-Hikasho: Dokka! (Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm: Under Earth)" He called, slapping both of his palms to the ground below him and Raido. Sending as much of his palm magic as he could through the earth, Bacchus caused a shaking sensation felt even hundreds of yards away. Struggling to stay upright, Raido couldn't react to Bacchus' follow up. He was slapped on the throat, a vital hit for sure. He felt his windpipe shatter, and his breath leave him. Raido fell to his knees, grasping his throat in desperation. But air wouldn't come.

Aoba needed to act fast if he was going to save Raido's life. "Genma, I need to see to Raido fast! Try and occupy this guy!" He yelled before running off, struggling against the vibrating earth below him.

Bacchus had begun to regain some feeling in his body, and was finally able to move a bit quicker. Acting as fast as he could, the Falcon dashed towards Aoba. He was forced to stop abruptly when a small stick flew in front of him at high speeds. He managed to catch a flicker of electricity trailing behind it as it embedded itself into a rock in the distance. Aoba dashed right past him, but before he could even attempt to chase the man, he had to dodge another projectile from what was presumably Genma. Cursing to himself, Bacchus just abandoned the idea of stopping Aoba and ran towards Genma, who was holding another stick in his hand.

Aoba had finally reached Raido, and had to act fast if he wanted to save the man's life. A body couldn't go without air for very long, even if shinobi could extend that period substantially under certain conditions. Using some rudimentary medical Ninjutsu, Aoba began to message Raido's throat. The cracks and bruises along his windpipe began to slowly mend, allowing him some, albeit quite labored, breath. The man would live, but his role in this fight was over. Turning his attention to the still ongoing battle, he saw Genma failing to keep his footing during his confrontation with Bacchus. Maybe because it was HIS technique, Aoba didn't know, but Bacchus was unaffected by the ongoing tremors. The shaking was lasting far longer than any of them had anticipated. The force of his strike must have been quite substantial. Just as he was about to run to support Genma, his sleeve was grabbed. Aoba turned to look at Raido, who beckoned him to come closer. With ragged breath, Raido managed to let out a small sentence to Aoba, causing his eyes to widen under his glasses. Nodding, Aoba resumed his course towards Genma. It was time to end this.

"Raiton: Rairyu no Jutsu! (Lightning Style: Thunder Dragon)" Genma yelled, summoning his strongest elemental jutsu. Bacchus stood in awe at the seemingly corporeal creature in front of him. The dragon rose high and then dove straight for Bacchus. Exhausted, Genma fell face first into the ground, unconscious before he even hit it. As the dragon closed in on Bacchus, the Falcon grinned in pure excitement. He stretched his arms wide apart as if giving a hug, and waited. Once the dragon was about to collide with him, the mage acted.

"Sui-Hikasho: Raikka! (Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm: Under Lightning)"

He slapped each of his hands on the dragon's 'ears', holding it in place. He skid back a grant distance, fighting under the immense power the dragon was pushing forth. With a mighty roar, Bacchus finally clapped his hands together, making the dragon dissolve into many sparks of electricity in a loud crack. Bacchus laughed maniacally between his haggard breaths. He barely had time to notice Aoba throw some kunai at him. Quickly turning his attention to the shinobi, Bacchus saw him make two handsigns before summoning a new technique.

"Katon: Zukokku! (Fire Style: Searing Migraine)"

A small fireball flew from Aoba's mouth at great speeds, expanding in size along its way towards Bacchus. Soon it was like an oncoming tidal wave of fire staring the Falcon in the eyes. Bacchus chuckled before taking a new stance. He reared both of his palms backwards before performing a simultaneous palm thrust at the wall of fire.

"Sui-Hikasho: Hikka! (Drunk-Chop Hanging Palm: Under Fire)"

To Aoba on the other side of the technique, it was like two pillars of pure chakra had been sent straight through his jutsu to hit him. The fire just seemed to flare wildly into nothing within seconds, leaving Bacchus completely unharmed, but exhausted by the continuous use of his magic. Aoba flew back a great distance before breaking a tree and losing consciousness. Bacchus fell to his knees and threw his arms into the air.

"Wild!" He screamed to the heavens, proclaiming his victory. Just then, he felt his stomach churn, and he began coughing up blood.

**XxFlashbackxX**

_"I cut him... With the Kokuto... Just hold him off for a few minutes..." Raido weakly to Aoba._

**XxReturnxX**

"Poison..." Bacchus said to himself before falling to the ground. "...Shit..."

**XxBreakxX**

Gray and Natsu stared at their newest opponents with caution. They had met Sai before, and had a good sense of his magic, but the pink haired girl was new.

Natsu wiggled his nose a bit before speaking up. "Hm…"

"What's up, Natsu?" Gray asked. The look on Natsu's face was dark, something uncharacteristic for him.

"The creepy guy smells like ink, but the new girl smells like… blood. A lot of blood." He responded.

True enough, when one looked close enough, you could see Sakura's hands were coated in the stuff. This was, of course, because she had been doing some on site medical procedures beforehand, but they didn't know that.

Gray nodded back. "She's dangerous, I can tell. Let's get a feel. We know that the guy is a long range specialist, so I'll deal with him. You try and figure out what's up with the girl."

"I was gonna' say that anyways! You don't have to order me around…"

Just as they were about to start again, Lucy just screamed. "SHUT UP AND FIGHT!" And like that, the two Fairy Tail mage's kicked into action. Coating his hand in flame, Natsu went in for a strike against Sakura.

"Karyu no Tekken! (Fire Dragon's Iron Fist)" He yelled as his fist approached Sakura' face. To his surprise, she smiled and CAUGHT his punch. Sakura tried reeling him in by his arm, but Natsu kicked with his opposite leg, which she countered with her knee. After a tense standoff, Sakura and Natsu jumped away from each other and got some distance.

"How did you not get burnt? What kind of magic is that?" Natsu asked her.

Sakura just gave him a smug grin. "I wonder…"

Natsu growled and renewed his attack, engaging his opponent in furious close combat. The Dragon Slayer's limbs were almost always coated in fire, but it didn't really make a difference to Sakura. Natsu's punches and kicks were a horrible match for her medical abilities, but he couldn't figure out why. It was simple, really. Sakura gathered the majority of her chakra into her hands and feet when she was fighting. All of that concentrated chakra explodes during an attack, dealing superhuman damage. Used for blocking, though, it held the opposite effect of superhuman endurance. It wasn't a viable defense option though, since it was just her hands. Most ninjutsu was long range and explosive, something that having tough hands wouldn't matter for. But against someone trying to punch her with flaming fists? Not very effective.

But that alone wouldn't be enough though, even for Natsu. She wasn't just good at taijutsu. It was her specialty. Lucy watched in awe as Sakura danced around Natsu's speedy attacks, not taking any hits. She would redirect closer punches and not get burnt, but dodged a majority of everything else. When Natsu growled in frustration at her combat prowess, he gave her the opening she needed. Sakura moved quickly, throwing a fast punch straight for Natsu's stomach. He barely managed to get his left arm in the way of the hit, but he still flew back a good distance towards Lucy.

"Natsu!" Lucy called in worry. "Are you okay?"

Natsu stood up calmly and looked at his left arm. _"It's broken. How the hell does she hit that hard?"_ He asked himself, before being forced to hastily dodge Sakura's follow up attack.

"Okasho! (Cherry Blossom Crash)" She yelled, coming in from above. Natsu narrowly dodged by grabbing Lucy and jumping back, causing Sakura's fist to instead hit the ground instead. Lucy's eyes bugged out of her head when the ground buckled under the force of the pinkette's punch. The ground cracked below Natsu before large pieces of stalagmite burst upwards from the pressure, dealing slight damage to Natsu.

Meanwhile, Gray and Sai were peppering one another with projectiles. Sai's ink birds would collide with Gray's arrows in midair, so nobody had gotten injured yet, but they had to stay very concentrated. They had no interest in their pink haired friends' fight at the moment.

"Choju Giga! (Drawn Beast Mimicry)" Sai called, quickly drawing and subsequently summoning a large bird. He jumped right on and started to ascend, gaining some distance from Gray. "As an artist, my attacks are limited only to my imagination." Sai revealed. "I've always just drawn what I have seen, all my life. I wasn't very imaginative as my training demanded emotionlessness."

Gray raised an eyebrow at the statement. "Emotionlessness?" He questioned.

"I was to feel nothing. No pain, no love, no anger. I would kill when asked, and protect when necessary"

Gray's reply came flat, despite his serious expression. "You people are terrible."

Sai chuckled, opting to ignore the statement. "Lately though, I've gotten a bit more… human, I'd say. Imagination came with it." He said before drawing a new image on his scroll. Waiting for his next animal, Gray was understandably surprised when, instead of a corporeal creature of some sort, a set of ink kunai came out.

"Knives?" Gray asked, confused. Lyon used to summon all kinds of animals using his Ice Make, so Sai had been a pretty easy opponent for the most part, seeing as though he was used to the combat style. This changed things a bit as Gray could no longer expect only animals to attack him.

Sai tossed many of his kunai, to which Gray responded by meeting them with his own ice projectiles. As the kunai burst into clouds of ink, the separate blots of ink formed new kunai and kept going. Gray had simply multiplied the amount of kunai coming for him. He couldn't dodge them all, and a few of them stuck into him at different parts of his body, one in his gut. Before he could try to pull them out, they collapsed into ink and hit the ground with a splash. Gray looked at the artist with an angry glare, breathing heavily all the while. He didn't notice when the ink puddles on the ground molded into explosive tags, exploding soon after, damaging Gray greatly.

Natsu was forced to take his eyes off of Sakura to see what had caused the explosion, but before he could even TRY to figure out what had happened, he was decked in the face by his opponent. He tried to catch himself, but his left arm was too damaged to be used as a prop for support. It immediately buckled under the weight of his body, causing him to cry in pain as he hit the ground.

Lucy couldn't believe what she was seeing. Natsu and Gray weren't just losing. They were losing BADLY. "Natsu! Gray! Let me help, I've recovered enough to…"

"I'm fine!" Natsu yelled from his place on the ground. He slowly stood up, this time using the correct arm, and leveled a fierce glare at his fellow pink-haired warrior. "You're strong. Really strong." He complimented while wiping some blood from his mouth.

Sakura smirked. "What can I say, I train hard. Now, are you going to leave or not?"

Before Natsu could answer, Gray's voice echoed throughout the area.

"Ice Make: Geyser!" He yelled, summoning a massive pillar of ice beneath him, which raised him high into the air. Finally on the same eye level with Sai, he created a gigantic bow. Drawing an equally massive arrow, he glared at the shinobi.

Sai could feel the magic power being emitted from Gray, but wasn't worried. "How sure are you that you can hit me with that?" He asked with one of his usual fake smiles.

"I don't miss. Super Freeze Arrow!"

Freed Justine was calmly walking through the back alleys of Konoha, avoiding any conflict. He was stopped by the ground shaking, which prompted him to activate his wings and fly upwards to see what had happened. He saw Gray atop a gigantic pillar of ice, preparing to fire an arrow, but couldn't see any further when a black rope moved to impale him. Barely dodging, he looked down and saw Shikamaru in his crouched pose, handsign and all.

"Wings eh? That's a new one." Shikamaru said.

Freed lowered himself back to the ground and looked at his new opponent. "I am Freed Justine of Fairy Tail. May I know your name?" He asked.

"If it makes you feel better, I guess… Nara Shikamaru, shinobi of Konoha. I thought it was weird that you were the only one of your guild not making a commotion of things. What are you up to?"

"Nothing important, I just don't prefer combat scenarios." Freed lied.

Shikamaru caught it, of course. "I'm sure. You're on your way to where that light shone earlier, aren't you?" He asked.

The slight tensing of Freed was all it took to verify it for Shikamaru. "Thought so. Well, that's probably the most volatile place in the village right now, so I wouldn't go there."

"Fairy Law was used, and yet none of you are even injured. Something must have gone wrong with the Master." Freed explained.

"Yeah, he picked a fight with OUR 'master'. Biggest mistake he could've made if you ask me." Shikamaru said while standing up in an exaggerated manner.

Freed just smiled in response. "That's yet to be seen. Now, I assume you wish to stop me?"

"It's troublesome, but yes."

"Then come!" Freed yelled while drawing his sword.

"Whatever. Kagemane no Jutsu. (Shadow Possession)" Shikamaru called lazily as his shadow sprung forth towards Freed.

Freed immediately jumped back and hovered above the ground. "You must be who Mirajane told me about, the one with the Shadow magic. Try catching me up here."

Shikamaru smirked. "You asked for it. Kagenui no Jutsu! (Shadow Stitching)" The shadow under Freed burst into multiple lines before each one detached itself from the ground and flew up towards him.

Freed was forced to take evasive action, flying erratically as he hastily dodged the shadowy tendrils. He swung out and cut one of them, prompting him to do so again when the tendril dissolved. He was surprised, considering magic like that normally was mostly intangible. In an impressive flash of bladework Shikamaru's technique was gone. _"That was surprisingly flimsy."_ He thought to himself. He looked back down where Shikamaru should have been, but the man was gone, much to Freed's surprise.

"Sup." He heard from behind him. Quickly turning around, he saw Shikamaru attached to the wall of the building behind him. Before he could even react, Shikamaru had already pulled out a tanto and cut Freed across the chest, drawing a decent amount of blood. Freed, trying to recover, speed backwards away from Shikamaru. The shinobi immediately threw a kunai at Freed's retreating form, causing the mage to hastily move to the side. Freed then collided with another building and the kunai embedded itself in the wall next to his head. The member of the Raijinshu quickly turned his attention towards Shikamaru again, making sure not to lose sight of him this time. He lowered himself back to the ground once more, deciding it to be a better venue for battle with Shikamaru, who joined him soon after.

"You surprised me there." Freed started. "I had assumed you needed to stay immobile for your spell to continue working. I didn't think to have to keep track of you moving."

"You're right." Shikamaru confirmed. "I DO have to stay still. I just deactivated the technique and ran at you. Why did you think you could cut through my jutsu? Shadows are intangible. The technique was simply subsiding, giving you the illusion that it could be physically dispelled. It gave me a perfect opportunity to sneak up on you." He explained further.

"_He's much keener than he looks. You'd think that being in the air would be advantageous when considering his magic, but then he becomes too hard to keep track of."_ Freed mused to himself before leveling a glare at Shikamaru.

"It seems you are a more difficult opponent than I had first assumed you to be. Very well then. Shall we try a bit harder now?" Freed said before his right eye began to morph, its sclera inverting to black and his iris turning a dark, glowing purple.

Shikamaru got goose bumps just looking at it. He wouldn't falter though, he was better than that. "Why is it that all the tough guys have dojutsu?" He muttered to himself.

Freed wove his sword through the air, writing a word. Slashing his sword across the completed text, he called out his technique. "Yami no Ekurityuru: Itami! (Ecriture of Darkness: Pain)" The purple text in midair then flew towards Shikamaru, forcing him to hastily dodge. The text instead planted itself against the wall behind him, showing the word "Pain". Not deterred, Freed kept repeating the word, tossing more and more at Shikamaru.

"_I don't know what this crap is, but I'm not eager to find out."_

Shikamaru was actually a very agile opponent. He knew how important it was to avoid attacks and reach areas for him to launch his own, and he knew how to do so quickly. The shinobi didn't exactly know to what extent Freed's technique worked though, so he was woefully unprepared for what happened when he leaned up against a wall. He placed his arm right over one of the previously written runes that had attached itself to the wall. Quickly, the text removed itself from the wall and crawled onto Shikamaru's arm. Instantly, pain shot straight through that spot on his arm. Intense pain. It was only thanks to his training that he did not scream out in agony.

Freed took notice of this. "You handle pain well. I'm honestly quite surprised."

Gritting his teeth, Shikamaru managed to speak up. "We were eleven when we had our first pain training session. This shit is nothing."

"At such an age?" Freed asked, not sure whether to be appalled or impressed.

"Pain is important. It directs our attention to a problem with the body. Too much pain though, immobilizes the recipient. It's vital that we, as shinobi, can numb pain strong enough to normally incapacitate us." Shikamaru responded coolly, despite his arm truly being in a great amount of pain. He was actually analyzing the technique whilst he conversed with Freed. _"It's not a genjutsu, I can tell for certain. What exactly is it then?"_

"So you can take that much, but how about something stronger?" Freed tempted. "Yami no Ekurityuru: Kurushimi! (Ecriture of Darkness: Suffering)" He yelled, writing said word before tossing more and more runes at Shikamaru.

Shikamaru took one of the biggest gambles possible, but one he deemed worth it. Holding out his already affected arm, he let the new rune overlap the previous one on his body, causing them to meld into jumbled nonsense, no words clearly readable. Instead of the pain getting worse, all pain ceased in general.

Quickly dodging the remaining words, Shikamaru got some distance and crouched low. "Looks like I figured it out correctly after all." He claimed, causing Freed to curse under his breath. "The brain sends signals to all parts of your body, and signals get sent back. Signals outwards are commands, and signals inwards are touch sensations. You thought I didn't notice, but when you leapt into the air to dodge my Kagenui, you wrote 'wings' across your chest with your finger very quickly. After seeing you write the word pain and send it at me, and then eventually experiencing it myself, I realized that the words themselves are very important to the effects they bring. When 'pain' hit my arm, it replaced the signals going back to my brain with just that, pain. I figured that interrupting the structure of the word would lessen, if not cease, its effects." He explained. All the while, Freed just stared at Shikamaru in awe.

"I quickly realized though, that it was grafted to my skin like a tattoo. I contemplated running a kunai down my arm to scratch out the word, but then you threw a new one at me. I purposely let that one hit in order to scramble up the word already on my arm, ending its effects. So, any other tricks?" Shikamaru asked smugly.

Freed was beyond surprised at that point_. "Such insight… and the way he immediately countered it? Superb."_ He thought to himself. "I suppose I should go all out then…" He told Shikamaru, touching the ground and ceasing his wings. _'He knows the secret to the personal effect runes. I don't have enough to time to set up any area of effect runes, so my only options are runes that I cast upon myself. He's much too fast for __Ankoku (Darkness)__ to catch, so I might as well pull out my trump card.'_

Shikamaru was surprised when Freed sheathed then his sword. Freed wrote the next few runes across his own chest with his fingers. "Yami no Ekurityuru: Zetsuei! (Ecriture of Darkness: Absolute Shadow)" Freed's upper body became covered in a dark armor, complete with large shoulder pads and a helmet with a menacing appearance, his hair sprouting from it backwards.

Before he could even take in Freed's new appearance, Shikamaru was confronted with a voice from his left. "This battle calls for a more personal approach." Freed said. Shikamaru hadn't even seen the man move.

Freed struck.

**XxBreakxX**

"Super Freeze Arrow!" Gray yelled as he let his attack loose. It flew at such a speed that Sai could barely react to it. Maneuvering his current mount, he managed to not completely dodge, but divert the arrow's course. However, the arrow's blades sliced deeply through the area below his right shoulder. The pain was too much even for Sai to keep his technique going with it, so he lost control of his bird and fell towards the earth. Sakura immediately ceased her battle with Natsu and dashed straight for her fallen comrade.

Natsu, wiping excess blood from his mouth he had gotten from his previous pummeling Sakura had given him, walked towards Gray, who had descended from his geyser of ice. "His arm's barely on man. You sure that was necessary?" Natsu asked.

Gray, breathing heavily, looked at Natsu with a strong glare. "He was strong, extremely so. I needed to disable his drawing hand. I was going to blow off his hand, but he seemed to think I would be going for his head. He moved downwards and diverted the arrow to a different area. It was just bad luck, really." Gray explained, he too a bit regretful of the damage he had wrought on Sai.

"Sai!" Sakura yelled in worry. Her highly analytical mind assessed his injuries almost instantly. Medical ninjutsu hadn't reached the point of regrowing body parts yet. Tsunade had made great headway with her Sozo Saisei (Mitotic Regeneration), but even that came with a great price. Reattachment though? That was definitely within the realm of possibility for Sakura's skills. Glowing a bright green, her hand rode across the severed parts of Sai's arm, melding both ends of skin, muscle, and bone back together. It took lots of her chakra, but this was secondary to her as she could take the drain and still be able to fight. Running a quick diagnostic scan, she deemed him fit to retake the field.

"That's… How did she do that?" Lucy asked in astonishment.

"It's just like Wendy's magic, but much better. Is she…" Gray started.

Natsu finished for him. "She can't be. It's impossible. Dragons don't train two disciples. But…" He still wanted to ask.

"You! Pink girl!" Natsu yelled.

Sakura gave him an annoyed look at the title. _"Your hair's pink too, dumbass."_

"Are you a Dragon Slayer?" He asked hesitantly.

"A… Dragon Slayer?" She responded slowly, as if pondering the mere possibility of such a statement. "You mean you have real dragons running around here?" She asked in surprise.

"That's a no, then." Gray surmised. He wouldn't admit it, but he was buying time, and so was Natsu. Lucy had sent Virgo to go and get Wendy, but they needed to wait until she showed up before they could get some first aid. He was hurting, badly. Sai's last attack had hit home pretty good, and the blood still hadn't stopped flowing from the wound.

Natsu was aching all over as well. His arm was broken, a few of his ribs were shattered, and the left side of his face had seen better days. He could smell Wendy getting closer though, so things would be alright soon. Just a little longer. Luckily, Lucy gave them their last stretch of time.

"Wait, what do you mean by 'here'?" She asked.

Sai, having finally regained his bearings, spoke up. "Where we come from, dragons are a legend, of sorts. We have shrines, names, and techniques that praise the dragon, but no proof of their existence is known."

Lucy saw through the evasion. "No, that's the same here. I'm asking about the word she used. You act as if this place is completely foreign to you. Who are you people?"

Sai just let out a dramatic breath. "It doesn't really matter at this point, does it? The fact that we come from a faraway place doesn't change anything. Sakura-san, thank you for the assistance. Let's continue." Sai suggested.

Nodding, Sakura dove forward at Natsu. Natsu hastily threw a right hook, but he was too fatigued to do much to Sakura. She skillfully redirected the attack and grabbed him by his scarf. Sakura then reeled him in with it and kneed him in the gut. Natsu coughed up some blood, but tried his best to still react. He grabbed her thigh and held her in place. He looked straight at her, and prepared his attack. Sakura noticed his cheeks bulge, and tried to pull away, but it was too late.

"Karyu no Hoko! (Fire Dragon's Roar)" Natsu yelled, blowing a large stream of fire straight at Sakura at point blank range. She flew back and skidded across the floor a good distance before coming to a halt. Sakura had taken a great deal of damage; she was covered in burns and was having trouble breathing.

Gray meanwhile had hastily frozen his wounds over to stem the blood flow temporarily. Forming an ice sword, he took the small opening Sai gave him when Sakura got hurt. This could be his only chance to get in close. Sai quickly drew his tanto once he noticed Gray's approach, but the advantage was clear. He sorely lacked the close combat skills that Gray had honed over his years of battle. Sai had skill with his tanto, he wasn't stupid enough to think he would never have to get near an opponent, but it was far from his forte. Slowly, the flow of the conflict changed. He started taking small cuts, but as the battle stretched on, he started losing his stance. Gray was pushing with everything he had, considering how hurt he was. Anything that lasted too long would potentially cripple him due to the pain of his injuries. Summoning a second sword, he went in for the kill.

"Ice Bringer!" He bellowed, cutting a cross shaped slash over Sai's chest. Blood fell to the ground, and Sai did as well.

Natsu and Gray immediately fell to their knees, completely exhausted. Lucy was ecstatic. "You guys won!" She yelled in excitement. Just then, a new presence made itself known. Tsunade, carrying the unconscious body of Mirajane, landed right in between the two fallen shinobi.

**XxFlashbackxX**

_"Wendy-san!" A random council mage yelled out amongst the battlefield._

_The blue-haired Dragon Slayer turned her attention away from her Chunin opponent and towards the call for help. The tent she had set up as a medic station had been attacked by these masked men, and she was having trouble healing AND defending it at the same time. She went and healed the man that had called for her and quickly redirected her priorities to her previous opponent._

_"__Tenryu no Hoko! (Sky Dragon's Roar)__" She yelled, sending a large tunnel of wind that carried off multiple shinobi through the air. She was forced to break her attention again as a new arrival came from underground._

_Straight out of the ground popped Virgo, maid outfit and all. "Wendy-sama, Hime requires your assistance!" She said, all business for once._

_"But Virgo-san, I can't leave here, people still need my help!" Wendy argued._

_Taking a quick glance around, Virgo understood, but still pushed forth her message. "Natsu-sama and Gray-sama are both very hurt, and need help quickly if they are to win their fight. I can get you within the village walls, but no further. Hime's magic power is running low." She told the young healer._

_"But, I don't think I can-" She was cut off as a shinobi flew past her and into a tree. She looked at the source of the attack in surprise. She couldn't help but stare as Bacchus arrived and began pelting ROOT shinobi all over the place. She saw the Quatro Kerberos insignia on his back, and then smiled in awe._

_Virgo gave her a pointed look. "I believe things seem to be under control here, don't you agree?"_

_Wendy nodded and proceeded towards Natsu and Gray with Virgo's help. Once she was dropped off inside the village, she had to close her eyes and just run as she passed up the injured of dead shinobi. Even if they were enemies, the loss of life still hurt Wendy greatly. Her sense of smell brought her straight to an injured Natsu and Gray, who both stared down three enemy shinobi._

**XxReturnxX**

An inch.

That's all that separated Freed's clawed hand from Shikamaru's body. Shikamaru's grip on Freed's wrist was flimsy at best, seeing as physical prowess was far from his strength. Both of his hands were desperately clawed around Freed's wrist, fighting to keep the hand in place. One wrong move, and Shikamaru would be impaled, no question about it. He didn't even know how he had reacted so fast to be honest. He'd have to thank Asuma-sensei for that one, rest his soul.

"_Good lord, how strong is this guy!?" _Shikamaru asked himself as he continued to struggle against Freed.

"I'm surprised." Freed said, his voice an echo through his helmet. "I didn't think you would react that fast." He complimented.

"My sensei always used to say that it paid to be paranoid in battle. I'm always expecting to be caught off guard." Shikamaru responded in a strained voice, still holding back Freed.

"A wise philosophy." Freed said before taking a stab at Shikamaru with his free hand. Shikamaru let go of Freed and ducked under the second attack. He then lashed out with his leg to sweep, but Freed jumped over it and kicked Shikamaru straight in the face, sending him a good distance away.

Shikamaru shakily stood and spit of some blood. "Damn he hits hard." Shikamaru said to himself before being forced to act again as Freed dashed towards him. Redrawing his tanto, Shikamaru parried Freed's strike, albeit with great difficulty. He was being given no time to make any handseals, and Freed was keeping his distance in addition to that. The mage had chosen a hit and run strategy, making sure not to stay around Shikamaru for too long.

Deciding to go for the kill, Freed held out his right hand, which then started to crackle with electricity. As the sparks increased, his hand began to shake under the strain. Soon, a condensed ball of lightning was held in the clawed hand of the mage, ready to do some serious damage. Looking at Shikamaru, he noticed the man was holding a trench knife in his right hand. The green haired man wondered what his opponent was going to do with those.

"Just a little closer..." Shikamaru mumbled to himself.

Freed dashed forward with his remarkable speed, moving in to end the fight. "It's over, Nara Shikamaru!" He bellowed as he gained speed.

"Not quite." Shikamaru said with a chuckle. Once Freed got completely in Shikamaru's line of sight, right apart from each other, Shikamaru stabbed the trench knife into the ground. And just like that, Freed froze in place.

"What?!" The man yelled in surprise. "Our shadows aren't connected! I didn't give you any time to make your special poses, so how?"

Shikamaru made a gesture to Freed to look down. He squinted to see, but once he saw what Shikamaru wanted him too, his eyes widened in astonishment. "You..."

"This isn't an ordinary knife. It's a chakra blade. I infuse it with my chakra, and it adopts effect based on the user. If I stab this blade into your shadow, or anything connected to it, you freeze. That's the Kagemane Shuriken no Jutsu (Shadow Possession Shuriken)." Shikamaru explained.

"But where did that shadow come from?" Freed asked, pointing out the key to Shikamaru's victory. An extremely thin line of black went from in front of Shikamaru to Freed. Shikamaru's chakra blade was stabbed directly on top of the small shadow, it being enough to paralyze Freed.

Shikamaru smirked and pointed up. Freed looked to the sky, and this time had to look even harder than the first time, but he was it. A string, connected from one building to the other, completely draped across the alleyway. The string looped into the ring of a kunai deposited high up on one of the buildings. It took a moment, but Freed was a smart man. He ran through their fight in an instant, and his eyes widened when he found the memory he was looking for.

"At the start of the fight, when you threw that knife?! There was already a string attached to it!" He yelled in surprise. He just couldn't believe how strategically talented Shikamaru was.

"Exactly. And now, the fight is over." Shikamaru claimed before making a handsign. Soon, the small strip of shadow connecting the two combatants extended in width dramatically, showing that Shikamaru was completely in control at that point.

"Kage Nui no Jutsu (Shadow Stitching)." He said as the shadow around Freed shot outwards and impaled him in rapid succession. Freed cried in pain at the intrusion, and could do nothing as the shadowy tendrils came back out of his body and wrapped into a not, effectively stitching Freed in place.

As Freed felt his consciousness fade, his technique dropped, shedding his armor and revealing is face. Once Shikamaru was certain the man was out, he let him go, watching as he fell straight to the ground.

Pulling the chakra blade out of the ground, Shikamaru stood up with a loud groan, holding his hand to his back to help straightened in out. "That was far more troublesome than it was worth." He mumbled before walking to exit the alleyway. It would probably be a good idea to check on the Hokage.

**XxBreakxX**

"Come on, babies!" Bixlow bellowed as his wooden dolls shot laser beams into the enemies' ranks. In an alleyway across the street, two kunoichi strategized under cover how to approach the situation.

"Okay, what the hell is up with this guy's powers?!" Ino complained. "Little wooden dolls flying around and shooting laser beams? That's a whole different kind of weird, even for us shinobi!"

Hinata, the other kunoichi present, was kind of ignoring her, keeping her Byakugan trained of Bixlow's dolls. Coming to a realization, Hinata finally responded to Ino. "I've been watching the flow of his… magic, for a while now. It's different than chakra, but I can definitely follow it with my Byakugan. From what I can see, he channels his magic power into those dolls, controlling them like a puppeteer. The difference though, is that he seems to control them with mental commands, not physical movements. Because of that, there are no strings to sever. I was wondering how he could do something like that, and finally noticed his eyes."

"His eyes?" Ino questioned. "How could you see them, they're behind a… never mind, dumb question. What did you see?"

"He seems to be using a dojutsu of sorts to control the dolls. That's probably why he keeps them protected." Hinata explained.

Ino made a thinking pose, with her hand on her chin. "Maybe a flashbang could sever his connection with the dolls?"

"No, his connection to the dolls isn't as simple as just looking at them. The technique may start with his eyes, but after the fact, he just controls them with his magic. We'll just have to break the dolls and move in for the kill."

Ino nodded. "Works for me. Let's go!"

All the while, Bixlow was maniacally laughing while his dolls tore into the shinobi forces. As he went for a downed Genin, his doll was pierced by a kunai, breaking it into two. "Ah! My baby!" He yelled dramatically. He immediately looked towards the source of the attack and saw Ino with her hand outstretched. Quickly taking in her outfit, he sighed just as dramatically. "More scantily clad women for me to fight? I don't know whether to be happy or upset…" He mused, remembering his recent fight with Lucy.

Bixlow was forced to quickly jump out of the way of Hinata's attack from behind. "Damn! What's up with your eyes, girl?" He mocked, getting a good look at her. "You two don't seem to be as weak as the others, so how about we have a good dance?" He exclaimed, showing of his long tongue as he spoke.

"Dance! Dance!" His dolls repeated.

Bixlow quickly jumped onto two of his dolls and started floating. With a quickly yell, his other three dolls began to fire wildly from different angles at the two kunoichi. Hinata's juken training demanded flexibility, so she had no problem dancing around the attacks, but Ino wasn't as agile. She hadn't taken a direct hit, but she'd gotten her fair share of cuts from grazing lasers. Bixlow's ability to fly made the battle much more difficult than Hinata had originally intended it to be. She figured she could just chase him down cut off his tenketsu at close range, but his newfound mobility was proving to be a considerable problem.

Quickly regrouping for a strategy session, Ino and Hinata talked out their newest problem. "Breaking the dolls and getting close isn't exactly going to be as easy as you thought, is it?" Ino complained, still trying to keep out of the lines of fire.

"I…" Hinata started, seemingly hesitant to continue the statement. "Maybe you could take over one of his dolls? You invade people's chakra systems, right? Maybe it could work for magic too." She suggested.

Ino thought on in for a second. "I could probably do it, but I would only remove his control from the dolls. I don't think I could attack with them. That has something to do with his magic."

Hinata nodded. "That's fine. Just try to catch one of the dolls and maybe I'll have a better time getting close to him." She instructed.

"Ha! I'll give you better!" Ino claimed before jumping out into the open.

"What? Giving up already?" Bixlow mocked. "How boring!"

"Boring! Boring!" His dolls echoed.

Ino smirked while making a hand sign. "Shinten Bunshin no Jutsu! (Mind-Body Switch Clone)" Beams of blue light left Ino's body and homed in on Bixlow's three attacking dolls. Panicking, Bixlow tried moving his dolls erratically to evade the attack, but that was Ino's plan. Instead of chasing down the moving dolls, they flew straight into the dolls under each of Bixlow's feet.

_"Two?"_ Hinata thought, impressed.

"What?!" He exclaimed in surprise.

Once in control, Ino dropped Bixlow by moving the dolls. Showing some surprising acrobatic skill, Bixlow jumped between on the buildings in the alleyway below until he neatly landed on the ground. Growling in frustration, he didn't notice the presence right behind him.

"Juho: Soshiken! (Gentle Step: Twin Lion Fists)" Hinata yelled, surprising Bixlow greatly. He turned around quickly, only to see two blue lions of energy around each of her hands. He could do nothing as Hinata plunged both of her palms straight into his gut.

"Gah!" Bixlow coughed, spitting up a fair amount of blood from the internal damage of the Jyuken style. He flew a good distance down the alley before skidding to a rough stop. Struggling heavily, he actually managed to stand back up, to both Hinata and Ino's great surprise.

"You think you can control my babies?!" He screamed before raising his fist into the air. "CRUSH!" He commanded, pulling his fist down. Each of the dolls Ino controlled detonated in a massive explosion, sending her real body back a great distance. Hinata quickly dashed over to Ino to see if she was okay.

Bixlow called back his remaining three dolls to him before speaking. "This ends now!"

"Now! Now!" His dolls followed.

"Baryon Formation!" He called as the three dolls began to rapidly spin in a circle. A green glow started to be emitted from them until they were just a green blur.

"Fire!" He yelled before a gigantic green laser burst forth from the dolls' formation. Laughing madly at his imminent victory, he was quickly interrupted by Hinata's voice.

"Shugohakke Rokujuyon Sho! (Protection of the Eight Trigrams 64 Palms)" She yelled, rapidly moving her hands and emitting charka, creating a sort of blue net that completely dismantled Bixlow's laser. After the dust cleared, Hinata was forced to one knee in exhaustion from her efforts.

Bixlow was simply speechless. His dolls had been controlled by Ino's switching technique, and his laser had been blocked by Hinata's sphere technique. He still had one trick up his sleeve though. Raising his hand to his face, he grabbed and pulled off his mask. The sickly glowing eyes that he revealed could make even a seasoned shinobi uneasy.

"This is a battlefield!" Bixlow yelled towards the girls. "I haven't killed a single one of these people here, so they're prime material for my Figure Eyes!"

All of the shinobi Bixlow had defeat rose to attention like puppets. Their skin had gained a darker tint, and their eyes were dead.

Bixlow stuck out his tongue and laughed. "Can you fight your own guild mates? It's over, girls!"

Hinata and Into almost shed tears as they were attacked by their fellow shinobi. They just couldn't hurt them, at least not enough to put them down for good, especially not that many. Bixlow had won... But Bixlow wasn't as sadistic as one would think him. He had his new marionettes quickly knock them out, so he could move on through the village.

Putting back on his visor, Bixlow held a hand to his stomach. He was more hurt than he let on, but he could keep going.

**XxBreakxX**

Kakashi and Makarov stood opposite of each other, breathing heavily, and a bit injured. While Makarov had cuts, Kakashi had bruises, mainly due to the difference in their fighting styles. Makarov was big on punches and open handed slaps, while Kakashi was more about precision and his weapons. Both were brought out of their standoff by the sound on two large objects hitting the ground. Danzo had just removed the casings around his arm and effectively unsealed it. The whitish-gray monstrosity that was revealed made Makarov's eyes widen in surprise and disgust. Even Kakashi, who had just recently learned what was under them, still hated the sight himself. All of those Sharingan adorning the appendage made him sick.

"What is that arm?!" Makarov exclaimed.

Danzo gave the short man a tough look. "I've already told you that our skills center around our eyes. I've implanted myself with extras for certain techniques. That's all you need to know."

"But you told me the eyes were hereditary! That means that each of those eyes came from a family member! Did you kill them for the eyes? Where did you get them, you monster?!" Makarov demanded.

"Here and there. It's a long story." Danzo answered.

Kakashi was done with the conversation the minute it started. This was a battle, and Danzo would do well to remember that fact. "Danzo, stop bickering with the old man. Help me finish him." He ordered as a Hokage would.

"Very well, Hokage-sama." Danzo replied mockingly, very much aware of the tone Kakashi was using.

Makarov readied himself for the charge that immediately followed.

Pulling out a kunai, Danzo blew wind chakra across it, creating a greenish sword of wind. With great speed, he struck down at Makarov, prompting the old man to jump back. Danzo then placed his newly uncovered arm onto the ground, causing multiple pillars of wood to strike forth at Makarov. Summoning his pillars of light again, the Guild Master caused the wood to disintegrate on contact with the shield. The Wizard Saint was then forced to extend his shield to his rear flank as Kakashi closed in. Stopping on a dime, Kakashi made a handsign.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! (Shadow Clone)" He called, summoning a second Kakashi to his side. He and his clone then locked hands and summoned massive amounts lightning chakra between them.

"Raikiri! (Lightning Blade)" They both said, creating a Raikiri between the two of them. They then moved away from one another, causing the lightning to split and stretch between them like a rope. With a quick dash, both Kakashi and his clone closed in on Makarov.

"_This 'light' element he seems to be using is like a Kekkei Genkai (Bloodline Limit) of sorts... Most Kekkei Genkai are mixtures of two elements, and from what my Sharingan can see... This is like a mixture of lightning and fire chakras! And where there's lightning..." _He thought to himself.

"I'll be there to cut it! Raiden! (Lightning Chain)" He yelled out loud, before proceeding to slice through Makarov's defensive spell.

With a look of disbelief, Makarov barely managed to jump over Kakashi's rope of lightning as it tore through his defense. He was sorely unprepared when Danzo appeared behind him and caught him in a bear hug while still in midair. As they hit the ground, Makarov struggled to break free and was indeed making progress, but only until Danzo started summoning wild tendrils of wood to wrap around both of them. More and more wood kept growing around them and continued to contort around them, squeezing harder and harder by the second. Eventually, it looked like one giant tree with the two of them inside.

"What are you doing?!" Makarov grunted. "You wish to crush us both to death?!" He yelled.

Danzo smirked. "No, just you."

"Izanagi!"

The tree then tightened as hard as it could around both Makarov and Danzo. Kakashi was watching in amusement as Danzo reappeared outside of the tree like a ghost, completely free of damage.

"That arm of yours is dangerous..." Kakashi said slowly.

"The cells of the Shodaime and the eyes of the Uchiha are not to be taken lightly, Kakashi." Danzo responded.

Kakashi gave the elder shinobi a pointed look. "You know full well that neither Sarutobi-sama nor Tsunade-sama would let you be, correct? Your role in my forces right now is a gift, not a privilege. Thank me for that arm still being attached to you."

Danzo just sighed response. "Hai, hai..." He knew that fact very well. Even if it was just slightly so, Kakashi was the most military minded Hokage since the Shodaime. Kakashi saw past the ethics beyond Danzo's arm and instead viewed it for its power, especially given the circumstances of Konoha being stranded in a foreign world. In this place, power to keep the village safe was always welcome as far as Kakashi was concerned.

"Do you think that was enough?" Kakashi asked, breaking Danzo out of his musings.

"I certainly intended it to be, but if not, I…" Danzo was cut off by a huge fist breaking out of the base of the tree and straight into Danzo, crushing him to death.

Immediately afterwards, Makarov began to use his Titan magic to expand the rest of his body many times over, breaking out of the tree. Kakashi looked up at the towering man above him, sweating slightly.

Suddenly, Danzo magically appeared next to Makarov's extended fist that had crushed him earlier. He lifted his wind sword and swung down, cutting deeply into Makarov's massive hand at the wrist, causing the giant to scream in pain. It would have easily severed the hand if the blade had been larger

"But if not, I'm fully ready to continue." Danzo finished.

Makarov, fully capable of taking the pain, stomped over Danzo, creating a large crater. Cursing in frustration as Danzo reappeared, he was forced to react quickly when Kakashi started running up his arm, Raikiri in hand.

In the distance, standing on a tree, a man in a black cloak watched the conflict in amusement, his one Sharingan standing out from under his hood.

"It's almost time... Rin..."

The man jumped forward.

The unknown individual landed right in the middle of the ongoing battle, heedless of the danger. Danzo's arm had only two Sharingan left, and Kakashi no longer had the reserves to maintain his Mangekyo Sharingan. Makarov was similarly exhausted from magic used and pure damage taken. They all stopped in their places at the new arrival.

Tossing off the cloak, the man revealed himself to be none other than Tobi, now wearing a simple dark robe instead of his usual Akatsuki cloak. The mask had also changed compared to the last meeting with the Konoha ninja, now a simple grey with circles and tomoe drawn on it. From its two eyeholes, a pair of mature Sharingan eyes stared at the gathered fighters.

"You... Madara?!" Kakashi exclaimed in surprise.

Danzo eyed the man carefully, gaining Tobi's attention. "Koto Amatsukami won't work against another Mangekyo, Danzo." Tobi said. "You can stop trying to use Shisui's eye on me."

Danzo's eyes widened at the statement, but he calmed himself quickly. "You intend to fight us now that we're weakened?"

Tobi simply shook his head. "Not quite. I'm here to give you one last chance to surrender the Kyuubi to me, or I strike."

"Pein already tried this, what makes you think things have changed since then?" Kakashi responded.

"So, you're the new Hokage, Kakashi? How unlike you." Tobi said.

"I didn't presume you knew me well enough to make such a statement." Kakashi replied, his eyes narrowing.

Tobi chuckled. "I know you better than most, I'd assume."

Makarov was watching with interest and confusion. He hadn't interrupted because he was both interested in the information they were bringing forth as well as the chance to rest and recover from the damage he had taken for a bit.

Danzo then stepped forward. "You truly aren't Madara, are you?"

"I suppose there's no point in hiding it." The masked man said with a shrug. "Madara's name carried weight throughout the Elemental Nations. People were willing to listen to me, and I became well known much faster. Here, in this world, that ruse means nothing." He revealed.

"Then who are you?" Kakashi asked.

"I'm nobody." He said simply. "I have no need to be ANYBODY."

Kakashi was surprised by the answer.

"I had a name, but it holds little to no meaning at this point." He continued. "There are few who would recognize it, and fewer that knew me personally. That name is not required for Akatsuki's purposes."

"A nameless Uchiha that survived the massacre, then?" Danzo presumed.

Tobi shook his head. "Hardly. While I may not be Madara, I still performed the acts that were attributed to him in the last decade."

Danzo's eyes widened. "Then you are the one Itachi spoke of..."

"Itachi mentioned me? I'd assumed he knew better than that." Tobi said.

"He didn't give a name. He merely said he had somebody unassociated with the village willing to help him."

Kakashi was surprised at the revelation. "You participated in the massacre? I suppose not even Itachi could handle that alone, apparently..."

"While all the reminiscing has been fun, what of my proposal?" Tobi asked. "Uzumaki Naruto for the safety of this pathetic village."

Kakashi and Danzo both shared a laugh at that. "You knew the answer before you even asked that question, right?" Kakashi asked.

"Besides," Danzo started. "Your Akatsuki must be much weaker than the last time we encountered you. I doubt you have enough forces to fight us after Pein's death."

Tobi remained completely calm at his enemies' taunts. "I'm well aware of the difference in fire power. Fairy Tail helped me around that hurdle quite handily." He revealed, finally prompting Makarov to join the conversation, having reverted to his normal size and nursing his injured hand.

"What are you talking about?!" Makarov demanded.

Tobi turned his attention to the short man. "You were a wonderful puppet, Makarov Dreyar." He stated. "You act on your feelings far too easily. It makes you far easier to manipulate."

"WHAT?!" Makarov screamed back.

"Quatro Kerberos was quite useful to draw out those feelings." Tobi said calmly.

Makarov's eyes widened in understanding, prompting Tobi to shake his head, almost as if he was pitying the Guild Master.

"Kill a few of your friends, blame it on Konoha, and the next thing you now the village is weakened for me. That is the danger of bonds… they are far too easily exploited." Tobi said in the same tone one would announce the weather.

Even Danzo and Kakashi were gobsmacked when they heard this.

"Both Fairy Tail AND Konoha are in no position to oppose me at this point, so you might as well surrender the Kyubi Jinchuriki to me without a fight. You should save the people you have still left."

Kakashi growled madly. "The answer is still the same! Now prepare for battle, Tobi!" He yelled.

Tobi sighed and grabbed his mask. "It was worth a try, I suppose." He said before taking off the mask, showing his face to the three before him.

"O...Obito?" Kakashi asked in disbelief.

"I told you, names mean nothing anymore. I was once called that, but things change. Just as Hatake Kakashi loses meaning upon taking the mantle of Hokage, Uchiha Obito lost meaning upon forming Akatsuki." He told the wide-eyed shinobi.

"So you survived the war, didn't you?" Danzo asked, much more composed.

"I'm showing you this face for one reason. By the time this day is over, things will have changed for all of you. This world of violence, debauchery and lies will cease to exist. My new world even has room for you, Kakashi. When you killed Rin, I made a decision. This world we live in is just pitiful. My plan, the Tsuki no Me (Eye of the Moon), will fix all of that. The genjutsu that will cover the world will bring us all everlasting peace. Violence and war will cease to exist. Deaths like Rin's will be meaningless, and our greatest desires will finally come true!" Obito said in a preaching tone.

"This may not mean much to the residents of Earthland, but if I so desire, the genjutsu may be cast more than once if necessary. I've seen the perils of this world as well as our own, and this world is no less cursed than the other." He said before turning his attention to Makarov. "You should know this better than most, Makarov-dono. I've met with individuals like that Purehito and Arcadios, even the man called Zeref himself. Nothing is different, no matter where you go. The only solution is eternal sleep, and Tsuki no Me will achieve that." Obito finished.

"I bid you all farewell, and hope you enjoy my new world. We shall meet again there soon." He said before disappearing through use of his space-time jutsu.

Obito reappeared atop a building in the middle of the city, quite a distance away from Kakashi and Danzou. He formed the signs necessary for a summoning and slammed his palm on the ground.

"It begins... Kuchiyose no Jutsu! (Summoning)"

"Wendy!" Lucy called in relief. Natsu and Gray both sent her a grateful look as well. The Sky Dragon Slayer immediately ran over and began healing their wounds.

On the shinobi end, Tsunade was fixing up Sakura and Sai. "How could you lose like this!" She scolded.

Slowly getting up, Sakura managed to respond. "Sorry, Tsunade-sama. We were winning, but..."

"They don't mind desperation tactics. That, and I'm afraid Sakura-san exhausted herself quite a bit to heal me and others." Sai finished, gathering his bearings as well.

"But now that you're here Tsunade-sama, this battle's as good as won, right?!" Sakura exclaimed.

Tsunade shook her hand and pointed at her forehead. The seal normally there was gone.

"But, who was strong enough to-" Sakura was cut off.

"It was not during battle. I healed many people along the way here. My chakra is running quite low at this point. It's up to you two for now..." She said before collapsing, finally out of energy as well.

While being healed, Natsu and his friends were still coping with the revelation that Mira had lost. She was on the ground near the shinobi, covered in bruises and blood.

"Mira-san!" Wendy called in worry when she noticed her prone form.

"Don't worry, she's alive." Natsu assured her, finally healed.

Gray nodded. "Yeah, it's about time we finished this and got her medical attention. Thanks a bunch Wendy."

All fighters present were forced to stop in their tracks as a gigantic cloud of smoke burst forth somewhere in the city. The ground rumbled as the smoke dispersed, revealing none other than the Eight-Tailed Beast in all its glory. A mighty roar shook the entire city and the woods surrounding it. There was not a single conscious person in the area who hadn't noticed this terrifying beast.

"What the hell?!" Sakura yelled in surprise.

"What the hell's that thing?!" Natsu shouted, slight worry lacing his tone.

Atop the building near the Hachibi, Obito stood, his features as expressionless as always. "Are you here to watch, Kisame, Sasuke-kun?" He asked the two people who had landed behind him.

Kisame laughed. "Actually, I was hoping to join in on the fun myself if you don't mind." He said before dropping the limp body of Killer Bee on the ground.

"You brought him?" Obito asked in curiosity.

"Well, we had barely finished extracting the Biju when you tried to summon it, so I didn't really have time to put it anywhere you know." Kisame pointed out.

"Fair enough." Obito said, finally turning around to look at the two.

Kisame didn't react in any way, but Sasuke's eyes widened slightly when he saw the Obito's face for the first time.

"Well, you certainly aged well since the last time I saw your mug." Kisame teased.

"The Shodaime's cells are good for more than just a power boost." Obito responded, not even bothering to conceal this secret.

"I could care less about any of this." Sasuke said, finally joining the conversation. "Is Naruto here or not?" He asked impatiently.

Obito shook his head. "I've asked around, but as expected, nobody talked. I'm about to level the place until he shows himself. It worked the last time after all."

Sasuke turned to leave. "He's probably not even here then. If you knew him like I do, you'd know that he would confront you at the first opportunity. I'm leaving, there are still some things I need to do..." Sasuke said before disappearing in a cloud of dust.

"Such an impatient boy." Kisame said with a laugh. "I suppose it's time to act?" He asked seriously.

Obito nodded. "Do what you must. Leave none alive except the Kyubi Jinchuriki." He ordered.

Kisame laughed and jumped off of the roof down into the village. "Don't you dare interfere with my dinner then, Tobi!" Kisame yelled as he descended.

Obito just sighed. "Very well, I suppose I'll let him have his fun." He said before taking a seat. Now he just had to let things run their course.

**XxBreakxX**

Kisame landed right between the group surrounding Tsunade's fallen form. "Oh, what a shame." Kisame said in mock disappointment. "I was hoping to fight the famous Tsunade, not some no name shinobi or weak-looking mages."

"What did you say, fish man?!" Natsu yelled in outrage at the insult.

"Shut up!" Sakura yelled, interrupting the Dragon Slayer. "Hoshigaki Kisame, right? What is Akatsuki doing here? How did you find us?" She asked as calmly as she could, despite the severity of the situation. Her hands were already forming fists again, ready to strike at a moment's notice.

Kisame gave her one of his patented shark-toothed grins. "Why else would Akatsuki ever involve themselves with you?" He asked rhetorically.

Sakura and Sai caught on immediately.

"We're here for the Kyubi Jinchuriki. As for how we got here? Well... our boss has his ways." He finished.

Gray spoke up. "Who are you? You obviously have business with these guys, but why are you here now?"

Kisame just laughed. "I'd rather not explain myself to a puppet." He mocked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lucy wondered out loud.

"That guild, Quatro-whatever? You really think it was those wimps here who attacked them?" Kisame asked with a mad laugh. "You guys really are too trusting, falling for a simple lie that easily… It was our newest member who attacked them! You guys should know him, right? After all, he was one of your comrades."

Natsu, Lucy and Gray began to shake in anger when they heard they had been tricked. But Sakura paled significantly when she realized just who Kisame was referring to.

"The people who took down the barrier around the forest, the Curse Breakers? That was us too! We needed someone to exhaust Konoha, and you all played your part wonderfully. But now, it's time for me to finish you all off. You all seem to be the best off in this place... Samehada loves your smell." The former Kiri-nin drew his incredibly large sword from behind his back as the Hachibi began to wantonly destroy buildings in the background, causing massive destruction to the already battered village.

"And with this thing on our side, your village is done for!" Kisame announced before charging at the group.

He went for Wendy first, and as he swung Samehada downwards, he was surprised to see it parried by a woman with long crimson hair, who had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Before he could act further, he was blindsided by a swirling ball of chakra that was accompanied by a cry of "Rasengan! (Spiral Sphere)".

"Naruto/Erza!" The gathered people exclaimed respectively.

Naruto, his eyes currently framed by orange and his red cloak billowing in the wind, never took his eyes of Kisame. Erza, who was wearing her samurai clothes, was doing the same.

"Erza-chan, keep ready." Naruto instructed.

Erza nodded, eyeing Kisame's crumpled form carefully.

"Natsu, Gray, Lucy, Wendy..." She called, still concentrating on the Akatsuki before her, who was slowly beginning to get back up. "It's a long story, but for right now, just know that Konoha is an ally, and that this man... is not!"

Kisame stood up and tore off his Akatsuki cloak, showing his bare chest and now donning a large spiral-shaped bruise around his ribs. Blood seeped from around the wound, but Kisame didn't seem bothered by it.

"I thought I'd have to look for you, Uzumaki Naruto. It seems you've saved me the trouble." Kisame said with a grin. He then proceeded to unwrap Samehada, revealing the toothed blade beneath the bandages. "I'll enjoy drinking your chakra!" He exclaimed.

While Naruto and Erza were prepared to fight Kisame, the rampaging Eight-Tails was a problem they didn't want to leave unattended. But their friends were exhausted, sending them to fight against either Kisame or a Tailed Beast at this point would be all but suicide. But then their problem was suddenly solved when Makarov appeared in his gigantic form once more and literally took the bull by its horns. "I'll hold this thing off!" He yelled towards he fighters. "Just win!"

Kisame frowned at the display. "It seems I'll need to take this seriously..." He said before lifting Samehada above his head. The blade then seemed to meld with his very skin, making him more like a shark than they had ever seen. "This form defeated the Hachibi Jinchuuriki... Do you have what it takes to conquer it?" He asked condescendingly.

"Suiro Sameodori no Jutsu! (Water Prison Shark Dance)"

A large dome of water began to form and expand around Kisame's position. It was growing quickly, and was too large to avoid. Soon, everybody present was engulfed in the salty water.

Undeterred, Erza switched to her Sea Empress Armor and flew towards Kisame at speeds that surprised even him. Erza and Kisame danced around the water sphere at great speeds, battering each other left and right. While this was happening, Gray shot Natsu a look. Natsu understood the unspoken order, and grabbed Gray by the wrist and threw him at Kisame as hard as he could. Kisame saw it coming though, and effortlessly batted Gray aside, his speed too slow to catch the fish man off guard. Instead of flying away though, Gray froze the water around the area where he and Kisame had collided, keeping them in place as well as immobilizing one of Kisame's arms. Locked in place, there was nothing he could against Erza's unexpected attack. Erza took the opportunity to aim a slash at Kisame's side.

Normally, someone would use such an opening to go in for the kill, but such a move was not something Erza would do. Her time at the Tower of Heaven had made her the most adamant enforcer of the non-kill clause in Fairy Tail. And while holding back wasn't something they could afford in this situation, she would still rather cripple than kill. As blood seeped through the water, Gray moved to break his lock with Kisame. Surprisingly, he felt his muscles go lax, unable to keep himself at attention. The ice mage could feel his magic power leaving him, and much to his surprise, the gash across Kisame's side was closing up on its own. Kisame spun in a quick circle and threw Gray off him at high speeds, causing the man to fly out of the water sphere and hit a building, finally sending him into the realm of unconsciousness.

Erza and the spectators were beyond surprised, but Lucy and Wendy had figured out what happened.

"_He absorbed Gray's magic energy and utilized it to heal his wounds?" _Wendy thought to herself.

"_That's... unfair... How are we supposed to win against someone like that?" _Lucy mused tiredly.

Lucy was the first to start craving air. Natsu and Erza had a strong physical endurance and could handle this for a couple minutes. Just as Natsu's insides were fire resistant, Wendy actually had larger lungs than most humans. Her constant magical interaction with air would allow her to hold her breath for almost fifteen minutes, but Lucy was just a normal human. But just then, a welcome surprise joined the sphere.

XxFlashbackxX

_Juvia was beyond confused. She had been wandering around the village ever since her defeat of Tenten, but was forced to drop everything when that huge creature had ppeared. Moving to help, she was further surprised to see a giant sphere of water with her comrades in it, and in battle no less. She nearly had a heart attack when Gray flew out of the aquatic prison. As Juvia ran to the downed form of her love interest, she noticed Lucy start contorting painfully within the sphere. She had to make a decision, and a dying Lucy took precedence over an injured Gray-sama. Jumping straight into the sphere, Juvia moved for the rescue._

**XxReturnxX**

After Juvia started handing out air pockets as she did at the Tower of Heaven, Lucy allowed herself to take that breath she so desperately craved. Speech was now possible as well, which was a quite welcome bonus.

"Thanks a ton, Juvia!" Lucy thanked.

"It was no problem." Juvia responded while directing her gaze to the currently fighting Erza and Kisame. Erza's armor allowed her to dance with speeds close to Kisame's, and watching them battle was mesmerizing. "But Juvia has to hurry back to Gray-sama soon, so tell me: is that man a member of Konoha as well?" Juvia asked.

Wendy spoke up. "No, it's a bit more complicated than that. An old enemy of Konoha has attacked Quattro Kerberos in order to get us to weaken them. Now they've showed up to finish us off, but then Erza and that Maelstrom guy showed up." She explained.

Natsu and Naruto, meanwhile, were cursing their uselessness in the water. Natsu's magic was near useless, and he could barely swim in the first place. This was most definitely NOT in his comfort zone for battle. As for Naruto, he simply didn't have any techniques that wouldn't get in Erza's way in this situation. Both of them could see though that Kisame was having the upper hand in their battle. It wasn't looking good…

"Erza-san can't last forever! What do we do?" Wendy asked in desperation.

"Juvia will try to remove this water sphere, but it's probably too big for her to manipulate." The water mage said.

Lucy stepped in. "No, you need to get to Erza and give her an air bubble. That's more important right now."

Natsu just floated there, completely dejected at his lack of help in this situation. He looked outside the sphere and saw Makarov struggling to keep the Hachibi at bay. They needed to finish this blue guy fast, or else they were in even more trouble.

"I'm no good here..." Natsu started. "Can you get me out of here so I can help Jii-chan?" He asked Juvia.

She nodded. "I can try, but we'll need to be quick."

"I'll go too! Master might need someone to heal him!" Wendy added.

In her battle against Kisame, Erza was slowly losing ground... water... space? Whatever, she wasn't doing well. She noticed Kisame direct his attention away from her for a moment, and she followed his gaze. She saw Juvia wrapping Natsu and Wendy in an air bubble and preparing to throw him out of the sphere. Kisame acted quickly.

"Suiton: Goshokuzame! (Water Style: Five Shark Feast)" He yelled, summoning five water sharks that flew towards the group at high speeds.

"Oh crap!" Lucy screamed in fear. "Open, Gate of the Water-Bearer: Aquarius!"

With the trademark bell chime, Aquarius appeared in the sphere next to Lucy.

"Aquarius! I need you to stop those sharks, now!" Lucy pleaded.

Aquarius donned a brutal scowl. Rearing her pot back, she then sent a large jet of water at the sharks, scattering them about.

"I WAS ON A DATE!" She screamed.

Sakura looked at the woman like she was insane. Naruto had told her and Sai to stay back until that Erza lady made an opening for them to exploit. The red head was tough, that was certain, but Sakura didn't see her winning that fight one on one. She also wanted to go to that blue-haired girl and ask for some air herself, seeing as chakra exercises would only keep her alive for so long.

Seeing his sharks disperse, Kisame decided to interfere directly. Shooting a water jet at Erza, he seemingly flew towards Natsu and Wendy's location. Just as he was about to cut through Aquarius, he was stopped by a voice.

_"GOT YOU!" _Naruto yelled inside his head, slamming a Rasengan straight into Kisame's temple, allowing Natsu and Wendy to leave the sphere, albeit a little too fast and uncontrolled.

Kisame spun through the water, blood trailing behind him, lingering in the sphere. Naruto looked right over to Sakura and Sai, then nodded. Taking the hint, Sakura grabbed Sai and spun to gain momentum.

"SHANNARO!" She screamed despite the water, her words coming out in a garbled fashion. She let go and Sai was sent at Kisame like a missile.

Naruto caught him and straightened him out. Sai then pulled out his ink holder and spread the black substance through the water before he slowly made some handsigns and cast his Jutsu. The ink spread like a cloud and moved towards Kisame. While the former ROOT ninja was unable to draw anything under water, he could still manipulate his ink to help against the Akatsuki member. Still reeling in pain for Naruto's surprise attack, Kisame was unprepared for the blackness that engulfed him. It was different than Bee's ink though, he soon realized.

"_Shit..."_ He thought to himself. _"It's poisonous. He wants to disrupt my chakra control and dissolve the sphere."_

Kisame was having none of that. "THIS HAS GONE ON LONG ENOUGH!" He screamed, his voice perfectly clear despite the water.

Quickly flashing through some handsigns, Kisame pushed his palms out towards his opponents.

"Suiton: Daikodan no Jutsu! (Water Style: Great Shark Bomb)"

Sai's ink Jutsu dispersed instantly as a giant water shark flew from Kisame's hands. Naruto managed to get out of the way, but Sai was carried off by the shark. Naruto and Sakura looked on in shock as the shark kept moving, headed straight for the Fairy Tail group.

"Aquarius! Juvia!" Lucy yelled.

Both women in question tried to hold off the shark, but to no avail. The giant creature closed in with little effort and exploded in a mass of chakra, force, and blunt trauma.

Outside the sphere, Gazille stood with both Natsu and Wendy in his grip, covered in water from catching the two. Gazille looked utterly exhausted and was probably only moving on willpower alone at the moment, but he had managed to catch his fellow Dragon Slayers before they could make an unpleasant acquaintance with the ground. Lucy and Juvia weren't as lucky, and both exited the sphere in much worse shape, hitting the ground unconscious.

Back in the sphere, Sakura, Naruto, and Erza all cursed at the misfortune. Naruto was forced out of his thoughts as Kisame decided to engage him. He was fast, and Naruto couldn't keep up like Erza could with her armor. He was peppered left and right as Kisame's hook-like elbows made contact with his body. Coughing up blood, Naruto was struggling to regain some control over the situation. It was times like this he cursed himself for not having a greater range of Jutsu to use. A Suiton would be awesome right now!

"Kekekeke..." Kisame cackled. "Are you really the one who beat Leader-sama?" He asked mockingly, but soon stopped his laughter when Sakura appeared right behind him. Kisame acted fast and cut Sakura across the chest, but she just took it. With a garbled yell, she hit Kisame so hard he flew out of the water sphere and hit the ground. Hard.

No longer in contact with Kisame's chakra, the sphere just collapsed in a large pool of water that flooded the streets of Konoha. As soon as it was gone, Erza and Naruto gratefully took that breath of air they both craved. Sakura though, was out of the fight.

Kisame dropped his shark transformation and let Samehada reform itself. An aquatic form was pointless on land, even if Samehada was more vulnerable this way. He cursed his injuries, and used some of the chakra he had taken from Sakura upon contact to heal himself. When Samehada was part of his body, just touching him was enough to lose chakra. That pink-haired brat did hit quite hard though.

Erza switched to her standard armor and stood beside Naruto in front of Kisame.

"So it comes to this, eh?" The shark-like man said.

Erza nodded. "Indeed, this is the end. Come!"

And he did...

**XxBreakxX**

"Gazille!?" Natsu yelled in surprise as his head finally stopped ringing.

"Gehee..." The man in question chuckled weakly. He was a complete mess from his fight with Neji, but he had shown up just in time.

Wendy quickly started healing his wounds, she too thankful for his arrival.

They were all forced to drop everything when Makarov was tossed to the ground near them by the Hachibi, shaking the ground and destroying even more buildings.

"Jii-chan!" Natsu shouted in worry. The Hachibi heard him, and turned his attention to the three.

"What do we do?" Wendy asked, shivering slightly.

Gazille stood up, now free of injury and in much better shape than before. "We were trained to kill dragons, right? Well, Metalicana could beat this thing no problem. We should be good, right?" He said, looking at Natsu and Wendy with a smug grin. They both nodded back at him.

The Three Dragon Slayers had assembled!

**XxBreakxX**

"Naruto..." Erza addressed quietly.

"What?"

"Do you have a plan?" She asked.

Naruto chuckled. "I say we just go wild. Maybe I'll give him the old 'Shukkaku Special' or something."

Before Erza could question his strategy, Kisame butted in. "You certainly are a tenacious one, Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto just raised a questioning eyebrow at the man.

"We had the first seven Jinchuriki within months after we started moving. The Hachibi had to wait because of his volatile location at Unraikyo, but you... We had attempted to capture you years before we even intended to, and many more times since. I must say, I'm impressed." Kisame admitted with a cackle.

"I never give up! That's all there is to it!" Naruto responded.

Kisame cackled further. "As you've said before. Shall we start?"

Erza took that as confirmation and switched armors. "Tenrin no Yoroi! (Heaven's Wheel Armor)" Donning her Valkyrie-like steel armor, she summoned some extra blades and sent them at Kisame via telekinesis.

Kisame didn't even have to think twice before swinging Samehada through the oncoming blades, siphoning off the tiny bits of magic that kept them afloat. He then moved to fend off the Kage Bunshin that Naruto had sent at him. There were only three, but with Erza jumping in it was more than enough.

On the sidelines, the real Naruto stood still. With Erza as backup, he could gather more natural energy and let his clones fight, allowing him to just keep pumping sage chakra out for new clones when others were dispelled.

Kisame just loved the whole thing. Naruto's capture was a side quest at this point. Survival was his goal for now, and that was fine with him. He did notice that Erza wasn't going for many vital hits. She was a coward in his book then, despite her admirable swordsmanship. The thing he found the strangest about this little brawl was the lack of Naruto clones on his usual scale. The boy was known for making veritable armies, why only three right now? He looked at the real Naruto and noticed him standing completely still with his eyes closed. He cut through a clone and watched a new one burst forth almost immediately.

"_The boy's using that Senjutsu technique of his to keep the clones coming at higher strength than a normal one. Clever..." _He thought to himself.

Kisame made a handsign and called his Jutsu. "Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu! (Water Clone)"

On cue, four additional Kisames appeared, allowing them to match the number of the three Narutos and Erza. The real Kisame then dashed towards the real Naruto with his Samehada at the ready. Erza watched in shock as Naruto was about to be cut, but could do nothing about it.

Naruto opened his eyes wide right before Samehada was about the hit him. While his clones dissolved, he was given the time to bring up both of his hands to catch Samehada. He slid back under the force of Kisame's swing, and his hands were torn open as Samehada shaved his skin, but he had stopped the attack.

Kisame grinned at him. "Good reaction, but now your chakra's mine!" Kisame yelled. He was beyond surprised when Samehada began to slowly turn to stone.

"What the-" Kisame was cut off when Naruto brought a Rasengan down on the blade, breaking it into many pieces of stone. Kisame stared in shock at the development. What had gone wrong?

"Sage chakra's dangerous, you know?" Naruto said with a grin.

Kisame growled and backpedaled away from the blonde. He was forced to stop when he noticed Erza at his back, all of his clones defeated.

"It's over." Erza said with certainty. "Dance, my blades!" She yelled while dashing towards Kisame.

His attempt at blocking without his trusty sword was far from enough. Erza cut right through him.

"Pentagram Sword!"

Kisame stumbled back as blood flew from his body. The voice he heard behind him sealed his fate.

"Cho Odama Rasengan! (Super Big Ball Rasengan)"

Kisame looked in horror at the gigantic blue chakra storm headed straight for him. At his was hit, his last thoughts went by in a flash.

_"I wished I could have seen it… my world without lies and betrayal…"_

BOOOM!

**XxBreakxX**

Natsu hastily dodged a gigantic tentacle that slammed into the ground where he used to be. With a yell, the Fire Dragon Slayer kicked at it with his blazing leg. A small burn appeared, but nothing more.

"Shit!" Natsu cursed while being forced to dodge another attack.

Meanwhile, Gazille was over by Wendy, who was currently casting a support spell.

"Arms X Vernier!" She yelled, causing Gazille's arms to adopt a whitish glow.

As a separate tentacle of the Hachibi came barreling towards the two, Gazille raised his hands high and clapped them together.

"Metsu Ryu Ougi! (Dragon's Secret Arte)" He started, his hands turning into a gigantic broadsword hundreds of feet high.

And then he swung the sword down.

"Goma Tetsu Jin Ken! (Karma Demon's Iron God Sword)"

And like that, two of the Hachibi's tentacles were removed from its body. The Biju roared in pain as black blood flowed from its open wounds. While this was happening, Natsu had run up the Hachibi's back and stopped on its head.

"Metsu Ryu Ougi: Guren, Karyu Ken! (Dragon's Secret Arte: Crimson Lotus, Fire Dragon Fist)" He cried before releasing a series of machine gun speed flaming punches onto the beasts head. Each punch that landed caused a small explosion, and as each one occurred the Hachibi's head started drooping lower and lower. Once the Hachibi was battered to almost ground level, its eyes noticed Wendy.

She reared back her arm and swung it horizontally. "Tenryu no Yokugeki! (Sky Dragon's Wing Attack)" She yelled, slashing across the Hachibi's eyes.

The creature let out another roar as it bucked Natsu off its head. The roar gradually got louder until it shook the village itself. The Eight-Tails then suddenly stopped and began gathering a massive amount of energy in front of its maw.

"What the hell is that?!" Gazille yelled in surprise.

"It's building a lot of magical power around its mouth..." Wendy said.

Natsu stepped forward. "No way something like that's gonna' stop us!"

The Hachibi then fired its Bijudama. The beam was massive, and it was by sheer luck that the three Dragon Slayers had the same retaliatory response.

"Karyu no Hoko! (Fire Dragon's Roar)"

"Tetsuryu no Hoko! (Iron Dragon's Roar)"

"Tenryu no Hoko! (Sky Dragon's Roar)"

The attacks collided, but it was quickly evident that the Bijudama would push through. But before the three were hit by the blast, they found themselves knocked a good distance away by a rush of wind. They looked back and saw Danzo, having saved them with one of his techniques. He was then incinerated by the Bijudama. The beam traveled through the village, the forest, and into the distance, far beyond view.

The Dragon Slayers were stunned.

"That Jii-san... He saved us..." Natsu said in shock.

Tears came to Wendy's eyes. "Who was he? Why did he do that?"

Gazille just growled in frustration.

Suddenly, a voice sounded out behind them. "Please, as if I would fall to such an attack."

They turned and saw Danzo, alive and well. They were also a bit surprised by his arm, but held their tongue.

"You're alive!" Natsu exclaimed. "Thanks a bunch!"

Danzo just grunted and looked at the Hachibi. "That thing is quite the troublesome creature."

"It's tough... beyond me I'm ashamed to admit." Gazille said.

"What are we going to do? Erza-san and that Maelstrom person are busy..."

Natsu stomped his foot in frustration. "If I had some fire, I could get back in there!"

It was at that point Kakashi showed up. "How would fire help? I know a few fire style techniques if it helps."

"I can eat fire to replenish my magic power. And who are you anyway?" Natsu asked.

Makarov, back in his regular form, stepped forward, heavily injured. "That man leads Konoha... He is a formidable mage, and is on our side for now."

"Jii-chan! Are you okay?" Natsu yelled.

Wendy rushed forward. "You should lie down, Master."

"I'll live, Natsu, but I think I'm done fighting for the day..." Makarov said exasperatingly.

During this exchange, Kakashi was thinking over a plan. "You are… Natsu-kun, correct?" He asked the boy.

"Eh? Yeah, that's me."

"You claim you can eat any fire and absorb its energy and properties?"

Natsu nodded. "Yeah, it's part of being the Fire Dragon Slayer."

Kakashi stared at him for a minute. "Then I believe I'd like to try something."

"What would that be, Kakashi?" Danzo asked.

"Well, I'm VERY unpracticed, but I found out which eye ability I retained from Obito's Mangekyo."

Danzo raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Kakashi looked at him. "One Mangekyo is Tsukuyomi, the other is Amaterasu. Together they create Susano'o. I recently learned that Obito's eye retains Tsukuyomi, while mine has Amaterasu. Perhaps Natsu-kun can use it to give us an opening and stall for Naruto."

Things were about to get rough.

"Danzo, how much time do you have left?" Kakashi asked.

"Just a minute, and I have no intentions of using Izanagi with Shisui's eye." He responded.

Kakashi looked at Natsu. "Get ready quickly, I'm about to give you an extremely powerful flame."

Natsu brightened at the idea.

"But be careful. Even if you are trained to withstand fire, the black flames of Amaterasu burn even fire itself. I don't doubt the abilities of a dragon's innards, but please be ready for anything."

Natsu nodded. "Bring it."

Kakashi stared at Natsu intently as his Mangekyo came to life. Shortly after, his eye began to bleed down his face. Then, the black flames burst forth, straight around Natsu's position.

Natsu screamed in pain, but kept inhaling. _"The old man was right, those flames are HOT. But… I won't give up here! There are no flames…" _

"… THAT I CAN'T EAT!" Natsu shouted as the flames around him disappeared and he began emanating pitch black smoke from all over his body.

"Gochiso sama deshita... (Thank you for the meal)" He said while wiping his mouth.

Everybody present looked at Natsu in awe. The magic power he was emitting was amazing.

"He truly ate the flames of Amaterasu..." Danzo said in surprise.

Just then, Natsu's skin began to crack, creating a scale like appearance across his face.

Gazille and Wendy were the only ones conscious who knew what this was.

"Dragon Force..." Wendy said is amazement.

The Hachibi, finally tired of waiting, swung his remaining tentacles at the group. Natsu slowly turned and looked at the oncoming attack. "Enryu no..."

He opened his mouth wide and fired a beam of black flame. "DAIHOKO! (Flame Dragon's Great Roar)"

The Hachibi lost two more of its tentacles and took the bulk of the attack right in the gut. The attack was immense enough to send it tumbling over.

Up above, Obito looked at the scene in annoyance. "Who is that boy?" He then noticed Kisame's chakra signature vanish. "… if you want something done right…"

He abruptly stood up. "They've tipped my hand sooner than I'd thought they would..." He said before swirling away via Kamui.

On the ground, Natsu was dodging attacks from the Hachibi's remaining tentacles with ease, taking potshots whenever the opportunity arose. As a tentacle barreled straight into him, but Natsu stood firm and wrapped his arms around it, sliding back only slightly.

"Gazille!" He shouted.

Said Dragon Slayer jumped in from above. "Tetsuryukon! (Iron Dragon Sword)" He yelled, slicing off the extended tentacle with his blade arm.

He was caught off guard though, when the Biju decided to use its arms for once. With a mighty punch, Gazille was sent flying through multiple buildings.

Natsu cursed and moved to attack, only to be blindsided by the other arm.

Danzo sat down next to the exhausted Kakashi. "Can you believe it, Kakashi? They can destroy our village, force us into war, exhaust our shinobi, and summon Biju..."

Naruto and Erza burst onto the scene, with Erza catching Natsu's careening form.

"But the Akatsuki will never win..." He finished with an uncharacteristic smirk.

Erza then switched into her Giant's Armor and hoisted Naruto onto her spear. She hurled him with all her might, sending him high in the air above the Hachibi.

Making a familiar cross seal, what had to be hundreds of Kage Bunshin appeared, all holding gigantic Rasengans.

"Senpo: Cho Odama Rasen Tarendan! (Sage Art: Super Big Ball Rasengan Mega Barrage)"

The countless attacks drilled the Hachibi into the ground, creating a massive explosion.

"Because that is the Will of Fire!" Danzo finished, using the words of his late friend Hiruzen.

"Natsu!" Erza yelled. "Finish it!"

Natsu nodded and jumped into the air above the downed Hachibi. Two Naruto clones showed up next to him a grabbed his arms, rearing him back. With a mighty heave, the clones launched Natsu like a missile towards the Biju.

"Metsu Ryu Ougi Kai: Guren, Hou'ou Enken! (Dragon Slayer's Secret Arte Revision: Crimson Lotus, Phoenix Flame Blade)"

Natsu, surrounded in flame, dug right into the gut of the injured Hachibi, pushing it into the ground so hard a crater started forming. Black fire flickered all over the area, and the heat was almost unbearable, even to those at a safe distance.

The large oxen beast cried in pain, coughing up its black blood, before going limp.

Natsu barely managed to crawl of the thing before collapsing face first next to it, utterly exhausted. Erza, Naruto, and Wendy showed up next to him soon after, also tired, but far less so.

"You know what?" Naruto started. "You just knocked out a Biju. That was freakin' awesome!" He complimented, prompting Natsu to give him a wide, toothy grin.

Danzo sat next to Kakashi, who was lying flat on his back, unable to move due to chakra exhaustion. "Did... we win?" He said between haggard breaths.

The old war hawk grunted in affirmation. "I must say, I'm surprised. The beast is down, for now at least. The Akatsuki member seems to be dead as well."

"But..." Kakashi started, forcing himself to sit up. "Obito is still around here somewhere, as is probably Sasuke. What do we do now?"

"It seems that Naruto and the red haired woman still have some fight left in them. We're not done yet."

"Oh, but you are." A voice rang out.

Everybody looked up to see Obito, his mask firmly in place once more. What shocked many, though, was the figure that came out of his mask shortly after in a swirl of energy, a blue haired figure to be exact.

Erza was speechless. "Jellal...?" She asked slowly, barely finding her voice. She then noticed his clothes and the staffs on his back. _"No, Mystogan..." _She thought to herself.

Said man had seen better days. His hands were tied behind his back, and he was covered in bruises, cuts, and dirt.

"I'm surprised at your resilience, Konoha, Fairy Tail. But the day is still mine. You're even more exhausted than before, and now I can send you back to the Elemental Nations, courtesy of Jellal, here." Obito announced, leaning down and grabbing a staff from Mystogan's back.

He raised the staff to the sky, and the clouds opened up, creating a large swirl. "With my Sharingan, dimensional travel is quite possible for me. But for multiple people, Jellal's knowledge of the Anima was quite fortunate. Now we all leave!" He yelled.

Everybody soon felt their magic power being drained. The buildings began to dissolve and fly up into the rift above the village. Everybody began panicking.

Obito smirked before he felt a hand grab his arm holding the staff. It was Mystogan.

"How did you-" He started before being interrupted.

"YOU WON'T BE TAKING THESE PEOPLE!"

A light flashed, and the village was gone, its inhabitants with it.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**DARK GUILD KONOHA ARC, END**

**XXXXX**

**Everything's in place, and within the month you will see the start of the next arc…**

**EDOLAS ARC, INBOUND!**


	10. To the Parallel World

**EDOLAS ARC, START**

**XxChapter 10: To the Parallel WorldxX**

Yamato looked at the site of what used to be the village. There was nothing, just a snow-like substance that coated the ground in heaps. The council mages around him had similar expressions, and all fighting had stopped.

Konohagakure was gone. Again.

"What… What the hell is this?!" He yelled to no one in particular.

Torune had similar thoughts. "Danzo-sama!" He screamed in worry, uncharacteristic for a ROOT operative.

Yamato turned to a bound Mest, tied down by wood. "Is this a tool of the council?! Is this your doing?!"

Mest didn't answer; he just stared at the now empty plot of white land. _"What's going on?"_

The man was brought out of his musings by a hard punch to the face from his captor.

"I'm talking to you! Did you all do this?!" Yamato asked in anger.

"Us?" Mest started. "No way in hell, buddy. Damn near the entirety of the Fairy Tail guild was in there. Even if we did have something like this, we couldn't get away with doing it while they were in the vicinity, despite the urgency. I'm just as confused as you are."

Yamato just "tsk'd" and turned to Torune. "Round up the remaining council members that still live. They're our bargaining chip until we figure out just what the hell happened." He instructed.

Torune merely nodded and used a Shunshin (Body Flicker) to leave the area.

"Not again…" Yamato said to himself in a defeated tone.

**XxBreakxX**

The village was no more. Rolling hills of white dust saturated the ground, and not a single human being was in sight. Until a certain moment, that is. In a random clump of the white stuff, a bulge made itself known. It got larger and larger until a figure burst from underneath it.

"*GASP*" The figure cried, trying to find breath and shaking off the white substance at the same time. Eventually, the figure was revealed to be Natsu.

He quickly surveyed his surroundings, and didn't like what he saw. "Nani?! Where is everybody!" He yelled in surprise. He slowly stood up and started walking around, desperately looking for any sign of life. He yelled and yelled, but to no avail.

"Gazille! Wendy! Gray! Where are you guys?!"

"*Cough* Shut up, you're hurting my ears." A gruff voice spoke up.

Natsu turned and saw Gazille, who was trying to rid his body of the dust. He also took a look around after gaining his bearings. "What the hell?!"

"Gazille! You're okay! I was afraid nobody was here!" Natsu exclaimed in satisfaction.

Gazille look at him. "You mean it's just us? Where'd everybody else go?" He said, standing up, before slipping in the white stuff. "And what the hell is THIS shit?!"

Natsu laughed a bit before finally answering. "I don't know what happened really. The masked asshole was talking, then a guy who looked just like Jellal did something, and then there was this bright light. I blacked out for a bit, then woke up under all of this stuff." He explained.

"Masked asshole? Who're you talking about?"

"Oh yeah! After that octobull thing knocked you out, I kicked its ass with Dragon Force, then this weird dude wearing a mask came out and started making a speech I couldn't understand. All of a sudden, Jellal appeared, and there was yelling, and then FLASH!"

Gazille sweatdropped. "That explained nothing. Please tell me somebody more intelligent is awake here…"

"Um, I might sound a little rude, but… Ano… I'm here!" Wendy's nervous voice sounded out.

Natsu, while happy to see her, couldn't help but cry anime tears at the subtle blow to his intelligence.

"Wendy!" Gazille started. "You're alright. Did you see anybody else?" He asked.

She shook her head. "No, not from Konoha either. I think it's just us Dragon Slayers. I have no clue where everybody else went!"

Gazille finally stood up, albeit with great effort due to his injuries. "Okay, let's look around a bit more before we do anything else. I refuse to believe we're the only ones who made it out."

All three Dragon Slayers nodded and moved out. Along the way, they managed to actually find something.

"It's a foot." Natsu said, stared at the sandaled foot that stuck out from the dust.

"But look at the shoe!" Wendy said, pointing. "This person's from Konoha… Do we help him up?" She asked hesitantly.

Gazille stroked his chin. "I don't know… Konoha might be able to tell us what happened, though. Maybe we should give it a shot."

Meanwhile, Natsu was already tugging at the foot. "Erza said to trust them, so I do." He said before pulling.

Natsu uprooted none other than Naruto himself, who immediately started spitting out the white stuff. Surprised at seeing "Maelstrom", Natsu abruptly dropped him back to the ground, face first.

"Gah!" Naruto sputtered, getting another mouthful of the strange dust.

"It's Maelstrom!" Wendy announced in surprise.

Naruto looked up and glared at her. "Stop saying it that way! It's NARUTO. Na-ru-to, got it?"

"Who cares?!" Gazille yelled. "Tell us what the hell is going on here! Where did everybody go!" He demanded.

"Where did who go?" Naruto asked, only to finally realize where he was. "NANI! WHERE IS EVERYBODY!"

"So you don't know either…" Natsu muttered lowly.

Suddenly, a loud voice sounded out in the distance, getting closer by the second.

"nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA—"

A blue blur suddenly slammed right into the pink haired Dragon Slayer. "TSUUUUUUUUU!"

Catching his breath, Natsu looked down and saw his favorite blue cat. "Happy! Why are you here? We told you and Charle to stay at the guild!"

"A lot of good that did. Everybody's gone." A lower, female voice said.

"Charle!" Wendy called, excited to see her cat present as well.

Naruto slowly stood up, facing both cats.

"Be thankful we weren't allowed here for the battle." Charle said mockingly, Happy floating right next to her.

Naruto dusted off his clothes. "Do you know where they went?"

"Edolas. Our homeworld."

Natsu slammed his fists together. "Then that's where we go! To get them all back!"

"Hold on a second!" Naruto started. "What the heck are you things? Homeworld? What are you talking about?! And how do you know about it?!"

Happy gave Charle a sad look. "This is the first I've heard of it… Homeworld?"

"That's nonsense!" Natsu started. "Lisanna and I raised you from an egg we found! You were born here!"

Wendy stepped forward. "That's right! You came from an egg too, Charle!"

"You are correct." Charle said. "But the eggs came from Edolas. We were sent here through a device called the "Anima" with a mission subconsciously installed in our minds, but you!" She yelled, pointing at Happy accusingly. "You don't know anything! Not about your homeworld, and not about your mission!"

The blue haired cat just looked down sadly, not sure what to say to her.

"So, we're off to fight some evil cat warlord?!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Charle scolded. "Edolas has more humans than any other species there, there will be no 'cat warlords' ready for combat, fool." She mocked.

Gazille finally decided to speak up. "That's all well and good, but why? Why were they taken, and better yet, why WEREN'T we?"

"I can't speak for the blonde buffoon, but Dragon Slayer magic holds special powers in Edolas. You see, Edolas is a world that actually has a fixed amount of magic for everybody to use, so it's heavily regulated. The 'Anima', is a project to bring magic from other worlds into Edolas so the people can use it. Our friends are actually Lacrima right now, ready to be broken down and extracted for their magic power."

"The hell's a Lacrima?" Naruto asked.

Gazille looked at the blonde strangly. "You guys don't have any Lacrima in your village? It's a crystal of condensed magic that can do lots of things."

"But how does Dragon Slayer magic make us immune to the anima?" Wendy asked.

Her white haired companion shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know the specifics, but it just does. I'm a cat, not a scientist."

"Wait, you guys said you had a mission, right?" Natsu asked. "What was it?"

Charle was eerily silent for a moment. "It doesn't matter…"

"So then, how do we get to this place?" The resident shinobi inquired.

"That's the problem." Charle answered. "Mine and the male cat's magic is called Aera. If we fly at max speed through the remnants of the Anima in the sky, we should make it into Edolas, but…"

"There's four of us and two of you…" Gazille finished.

Suddenly, a new voice spoke up. "That won't be a problem."

Everybody looked, and were surprised to see none other than the battered form of Mystogan.

**(AN: Mystogan scoured the remnants of Magnolia city and gave Lucy and Gazille both the medicine and the way to Edolas. In** **this, he was still in the area after sending the rest to Edolas, so he can help.)**

"You're…"Natsu started.

"Jellal!" Wendy finished excitedly, jumping into said man for a hug.

He managed to form a grin despite the pain his ribs were in. "Sorry, Wendy, but I'm not the Jellal you're thinking of."

"That's right! I saw you at the cathedral! You're Mystogan!" Natsu said, slamming his fist into his palm.

Gazille was surprised at the information. " Mystogan? You're like the only mage in Fairy Tail I've never met."

The blue haired man nodded. "I'm actually from Edolas. The life I saved that day… was yours, Wendy." He revealed, looking at her fondly.

Starting to tear up, Wendy tackled him for another hug, causing him to cough in pain once again. "I've… always wanted to see you again…" She said with a shaky voice.

"It's good to see you again as well, Wendy."

Naruto finally stepped in. "You said you can help us, right? How?"

Mystogan sighed sadly. "I'm the one who sent everybody to Edolas. That masked man was intending to take them somewhere else, so I did all I could… I couldn't stop the Anima in time, so I just… redirected it." He explained.

"Don't be sad. It's better than nothing, that's for sure. He was taking us all back to MY homeworld."

The three Dragon Slayers looked at Naruto in surprise. "You guys aren't from Earthland?!" The Fire Dragon Slayer exclaimed.

The shinobi in question just shook his head. "We were taken from our world by this Anima thing, too. It happened just over a year ago, and we've had nothing but trouble since." He explained.

"I had assumed as much." Mystogan started. "I didn't witness the transferal, but I sensed a very large Anima incident around this area back then. It really WAS you people."

"So you're telling me Konoha's from another world?" Gazille questioned.

Naruto just nodded. "Where we come from, things are a lot different. When those magic council scouts came to check us out really soon after we arrived, one of our more… liberal members acted out and killed them. You have to understand, we were taken in the middle of a war, and then these people we don't know start trying to sneak into the village? We retaliated. Yamato-taicho then put up the forest to keep us hidden. We had some shinobi here and there go out to make some money, but for the most part we kept to ourselves."

"So it was all just a big misunderstanding?!" Wendy asked in surprise.

"We tried telling you guys like eighty different times, but then Tobi ruined everything by attacking that one guild! The minute that happened, you guys were on us like a dog to raw meat! Do you have any idea how many people died because you all just flew off the handle!" The Jinchuriki complained, getting everything out of his system.

"Then why did you kidnap Erza?!" Natsu asked, pointing rudely.

Naruto just gave him a dry look. "I was TRYING to use a teleportation jutsu to leave the fight, but she got in my space right before I left. She accidently went with me. I would NEVER hurt Erza-chan like that, okay?"

"So then it really was just one big mess…" Natsu finally responded.

"All those people…" Wendy spoke lowly.

Mystogan spoke up. "That masked man… You called him Tobi, correct?"

Naruto nodded. "Well, his real name is supposed to be Uchiha Madara, but he just goes by Tobi. He's… dangerous."

The blue haired man grunted in affirmation. "I've gathered as much."

"Who is he?" The Iron Dragon Slayer asks.

The shinobi looked at him seriously. "He's an evil man, and almost unrivaled in combat."

"He has strange abilities." Mystogan added. "I couldn't even touch him. Then there was his eye…"

"The Sharingan." Naruto clarified. "He said you knew how to use the Anima, right? He probably used his eye to hypnotize you into telling him. There was nothing you could do."

"It's no excuse." The illusionist said. "I specialize in illusions myself, and he was STILL far out of my league. I managed to circumvent the light constriction spell he had on me in time to break my binding, but I barely had enough of an opportunity to send the others to Edolas. It was a desperation tactic on my part, and I regret not having done more for them all…"

Naruto patted the man on the back. "I'd probably say that almost nobody in the entirety of Konoha could defeat that man in one on one combat. The fact that you helped them to this extent is awesome, and I'm sure everybody's thankful."

Mystogan manage a small smile as the three Dragon Slayers shared in Naruto's thanks. "I'm thankful to you all, as well, but… Things are far from over. We all need to head into Edolas and restore the others from their Lacrima form before it's too late. Fa—the king will eventually start to slowly drain their magic through the Lacrima… I'm not sure how long it would take for them to die through the process, but they most definitely would. I also don't know at what rate some would die. If we interrupted the process and released them, I'm not certain that ALL of them would come back out. It's a race against time to be sure." He explained.

"Then we need to get moving." Gazille pointed out. "We don't have much time."

"There IS an issue we must address, though." Mystogan announced. "We in Earthland take in the Eternano in the air to use magic. Earthland also has an immense amount of Eternano in the atmosphere, and the reasons that Edolas doesn't are still in debate. Now, in Edolas, he mages cannot actually take in Eternano directly into their bodies, myself included. We're just built differently. We have to use items to draw in the Eternano for us, so all magic in Edolas is done through weapons, such as my staffs." He explained, pausing to verify everyone followed.

"But after coming to Earthland, I've come to understand that as false. I don't know any spells that involve taking Eternano directly into my body, but I've found that I can do it. That leads me to believe that it's the Eternano that's different, not our bodies. Because of this, you probably won't be able to draw in the Eternano in Edolas. In simple terms, you won't be able to use magic."

Everyone except Naruto was startled by the revelation. "Then how are we supposed to fight the kingdom?!" The pink haired Dragon Slayer exclaimed.

"Well, I was working on a pill that was made of condensed Eternano that you could eat, forcing it into your body even though you can't take it out of the air. That DOES mean that you could only use as much magic as your body can hold at one time, you capacity, so to speak. Our bodies can only hold so much Eternano, so when we run out we get exhausted, and have to wait a while before we can start drawing in more. Since you can't draw in the Eternano in Edolas, you can only fight as long as your capacity lasted once you eat the pill."

Gazille just grinned. "I can work with that just fine."

Mystogan gave him a tense look. "Well, it's not exactly with me right now. It's at Porlyusica's hut, and that's a good ways away. I'm going to send you all to Edolas, and then head straight to her house as fast as I can. Once I get the pills, I'll enter Edolas myself and try to find you. This means that you'll be playing recon for a few days, no combat if you can help it."

"Is there anything else we should know about this place?" Naruto asked.

"Edolas is a parallel world to this one. They act as two sides to the same coin. Because of this, even the existence of people is mirrored. There's a Natsu in Edolas as well, most likely completely different from you."

At that point Wendy had figured it out. "So that's why you look like Jellal! You're the Jellal from Edolas, and the evil one here is the Earthland Jellal!"

"Ah! I see!" Natsu said, finally getting it as well.

Mystogan then turned his attention to Naruto. "Your existence is something I can't account for. The Anima shouldn't be able to access worlds other than Earthland. It's like one side of the coin trying to meld into a completely separate coin. It shouldn't work. Now that you're here, though, the coin has to adjust for your existence. The coin can't have three sides, so it will most likely just merge the new coin into each normal side. You could very well find Edolas counterparts of your group there as well. I would be prepared."

Naruto nodded. He would be ready. They didn't know he could still fight when they got there, since the only time he ever accessed Eternano was through Sage Mode. If he couldn't do that, then maybe he could try out what Bee-ossan had taught him.

It was then that Naruto's mood dropped considerably, but he didn't say anything. He knew what they all had to do.

The Anima expert lifted one of the staffs on his back. "Are you all ready?" He asked. After a round of resolute nods, the clouds opened up.

They were going to save everyone, and failure was not an option.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**Now, this chapter is really short because it's just an interlude/info dump. My chapters will start averaging 10,000 words, so be ready for some quality work!**


	11. Mirror Images

**XxMirror ImagesxX**

Traveling through the Anima was a strange experience, to say the least. It was truly just like moving through the clouds. It wasn't a short process, either. Just wind, breaking across your face as you moved further and further towards Edolas. When the group eventually arrived, it was a bit of a forceful stop. All that movement just halted on a dime. It was almost a little painful.

Once everybody got a look at their destination, it was quite the site to behold. There were floating islands, and plants and animals they had never seen. The land was a bit barren, and grass was scarce. It was a strange place all around.

"This is Edolas…" Wendy spoke.

"My roots…" Happy said to himself.

Naruto hummed. "Well if this isn't the craziest place I've ever seen."

"WOW!" Natsu exclaimed.

"This really is a different world…" Gazille muttered.

Charle scoffed. "Of course it is. Did you think I was lying?"

Naruto interrupted any argument that may have started. "Well, what do we do now? I guess the first step is finding everybody."

"Jellal said that they were going to be broken down by order of the king. So, we should just find the capital where the king lives!" Wendy suggested.

"That's sound about right, but where the hell is it?" Natsu asked.

"Oi, guys!" Gazille's voice sounded out. "Come check this out!"

Everybody turned towards Gazille, who was a good distance away looking through some alien foliage. Once everybody joined him, they saw what he saw, and were beyond surprised.

"It's Fairy Tail!" Natsu and Happy exclaimed at the same time.

Lo and behold, there was a tree-like building with the Fairy Tail insignia on it. Running towards it, they all promptly looked through the window, and the just a promptly shit a brick.

"Juvia! Let's go on a date!" Gray's voice sounded out. He was completely covered in multiple winter coats, and even wore two scarfs.

Juvia was wearing a very revealing outfit, with a short skirt, stockings, and a blouse tied up to show her midriff. She also had the curled hairstyle she used during the Phantom Lord incident.

"Not a chance. Try again when you're wearing less clothing." She responded rudely.

The man in question blushed heavily. "It's not my fault! I have poor blood circulation!"

Natsu's eyes widened to extreme proportions.

"How are you going to protect anybody that way, loser?" Jet's voice said.

"Yeah, how pathetic." Droy joined in.

They looked drastically different compared to their Earthland counterparts. They had extremely built figures, and tried their best to look cool. Sunglasses, trenchcoats, and exposed torsos. They were currently picking on a docile looking Elfman, who had a much calmer demeanor. His hair was bowl cut, and he looked like a prep school kid.

He was much less manly, to say the least.

At that point, things just descended into chaos, with everything from a foul mouthed Levy to a skinny Reedus.

"WHAT'S GOING ON?!" Natsu and Happy screamed at the same time.

"This is freakin' me the fuck out…" Gazille said to himself.

"Everybody's like an opposite!" Wendy pointed out.

Charle wasn't convinced, though. "Not opposite, just… different. Look at Mira."

They all did, and she was exactly the same as her Earthland counterpart, tending to the bar with a smile on her face.

"So it's like that Mystogan guy said, right? The Edolas versions of you guys?" Naruto inquired.

Charle nodded. "That seems to be the most likely answer. These aren't the people we're looking for."

It was at that moment that they were discovered. Wearing a black jumpsuit with the center opened all the way to show her underwear was Lucy, giving the spies quite the glare.

After naught but a cursory glance, Lucy immediately grabbed Natsu. "Natsu?!"

**(AN: THEY'RE NOT WEARING CLOAKS)**

"Um… yeah?" The pink haired Dragon Slayer responded nervously.

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!" The risqué girl screamed while pulling Natsu into some sort of painful grappling move, causing him to grunt in pain.

"I'm not Natsu!" He yelled. "Well, yeah I am, but not this worlds—gah stop that!" He tried explaining as Lucy started drilling her knuckles into his temples.

The rest of the Earthland group just sweatdropped at the somewhat comedic scene.

**XxBreakxX**

The King of Edolas, Faust, looked out the window of his throne room, taking in the view of HIS city. There was a new mountain in the distance, an addition that pleased him very much.

"_It's still not enough… I need more!" _

He was brought out of his thoughts by the quick pattering of footsteps. In just a few moments, a young girl zipped into his office and stopped in front of him at attention. She had brown hair and wore a strange cap with bunny ears. She wore a polka-dotted shirt and skin tight blue pants. She was barefoot as well, and seemed to have a permanent tint to her cheeks.

"Coco, I've been waiting. What's the situation?" He asked.

The now identified Coco saluted Faust. "Sir, the Lacrima we brought forth through the Anima is far bigger than expected. We won't be ready to extract for at least a week, and the process itself will progress throughout the month. In exchange for the inconvenience, though, this new development will provide magic for our kingdom until our dying breath. Only future generations would have to worry about shortages." She explained, quick and thoroughly.

"Which is exactly why it's still not enough." The king responded. "I cannot, and will not, rest until we have an eternity of magic, something to last this world forever!"

Coco gave him a tense look, not sure what to say.

"What is the situation with the main rebel forces?" Faust asked after a small silence.

"Sir, Madam Knightwalker is leading a raid with Sugarboy as we speak to deal with Fairy Tail. We have identified their most recent hiding place, and hope to end the chase there."

"And what of the Akatsuki?"

Coco seemed to hesitate at that. "Well, that's…"

"OUT WITH IT GIRL!"

"THE UNIT WE SENT CAME BACK EARLIER THIS MORNING!" She yelled back, caught up in the moment.

"And what did they have to report?"

"Nothing, sir. Only their heads came back…" She revealed grimly.

A large vain bulged on the old man's forehead. "If Erza fails her mission today, forego the usual process. I want her and Lily on the next legion to the Akatsuki's base. They may bring their regiments if they wish. You're dismissed." He ordered, turning to look out the window again, effectively snuffing Coco.

Walking out of the throne room, Coco came into contact with one of last persons she wanted to see.

"Gaara-san…" She spoke lowly, obviously not pleased to see the man.

**(AN: HE'S WEARING HIS KAGE SUMMIT CLOTHES)**

Gaara gave her a cold look. "What?" He asked rudely.

The young girl shivered at his gaze. "Nothing, nothing at all." She said quickly while excusing herself. Gaara just kept going and proceeded to enter the throne room.

Faust was a bit surprised at have another visitor so soon. "Gaara? What do you need?"

"I heard you sent Knightwalker and that abomination Sugarboy to hunt down Fairy Tail. Why? They've both proven quite ineffective at actually capturing ANYBODY lately. Why do you refuse to deploy the Shadow Squad?" The red haired teen asked calmly.

The king just scoffed. "Because I would have to update our maps afterwards. You and I both know that Ei and Tsunade would turn the site into one big crater, and you would be terrible at actually getting any of them alive. Onoki's older than me. I have no idea why he refused to retire from the military. But you do bring up a good point, perhaps I will send Mei as backup for Erza."

"She'll melt them. You're worried about ME killing them all, but you turn around and send the woman with the lava sword." The stoic boy mocked.

Faust gave him a glare in return. "You know very well that she has the self-control to limit herself. The minute you see a drop of blood you go off the handle. THAT'S why she's being chosen over you." He explained.

Gaara just huffed and turned to leave. The meeting hadn't gone as well as he'd wanted it to. He was suddenly stopped by Faust's parting words.

"I'm organizing a strike force led by Pantherlily to go after the Akatsuki. You should join him."

Gaara started walking again, this time having a maniacal grin on his face.

**XxBreakxX**

"So you guys are from some other world called Earthland, where there are doubles of all of us, and they were just kidnapped by the kingdom?" Edo-Lucy recapped.

Everybody sans Naruto nodded.

"That's… hard to believe." Edo-Juvia said.

Edo-Gray spoke up. "But it's true that this isn't our Natsu…"

At that point, Edo-Wendy walked up to her Earthland counterpart. The Edolas version of the young Dragon Slayer was anything but. She was tall, mature, and had quite the bust. "So this is… me?"

Meanwhile, Edo-Elfman was conversing with Happy and Charle. "So you guys are certain that you're not part of the kingdom?" He asked timidly.

The white cat huffed. "I already said the male cat and I are from Earthland. We have nothing to do with the Exceed here in Edolas." She explained.

**(AN: THEY'RE NOT DISGUISED)**

The blue cat, meanwhile, had a contemplative look on his face. "So that's what we're called? Exceed?" He asked her, to which he simply got a nod.

"I take it Lisanna die in your world?" Edo-Mirajane asked.

Natsu scratched the back of his head nervously. "Yeah, she died two years ago. I'm sorry for scaring her like that."

"She still hasn't come back from the storage room…" Wendy pointed out.

"Just give her a few minutes, she'll be fine." Edo-Mira comforted.

This whole time, Gazille and Naruto didn't know what to do. There wasn't and Edo-Gazille in the guild, and Naruto didn't know any of them in the first place. They just sat and waited.

"We don't have time for that. We need to get going. Can any of you tell us how to find the king?" The pink haired boy asked.

Everybody looked at him in sorrow. "Are you really going against the kingdom?" Edo-Lucy asked.

"Of course." Natsu responded without hesitation. "I need to save my friends."

"But the kingdom's too powerful!" Edo-Max argued. "We've already lost half our members, even the Master got killed!" He yelled, tears in his eyes.

This confused the Earthland residents greatly. "Why would the kingdom come after you and kill your members? What did you—"

BOOM!

The whole guild started shaking, and people began to panic. "They found us already?! Levy, get us out of here, NOW!" Edo-Lucy yelled.

Immediately, Edo-Levy ran to some sort of module towards the corner of the room and began to sit and press a series of buttons. "Shut the hell up! I'm on it already!" The woman responded rudely. Gazille couldn't help but notice HOW different the girl was from the Levy he knew.

"What the hell's going on?!" Naruto yelled, finally making his presence known.

"You mean you guys don't know?" Edo-Juvia asked.

Wendy looked at her strangely. "Know what?"

"Look, little me, you don't seem to get how things work around here." Edo-Wendy told her. "Magic is limited, so the king ordered all mage guilds to disband a while ago."

The Earthland groups eyes widened.

"Put simply, we're a dark guild." She finished.

"And now these assholes from the royal army are at our doorstep!" Edo-Levy yelled, still working her contraption.

The Konoha shinobi stepped forward. "So, there are guys outside attacking the building, right?"

The Edolas mages nodded, not quite sure what he was getting at.

"So, I'll just go out there and beat them up!" He announced, beyond shocking the guild.

"Are you insane?!" Edo-Lucy yelled.

Natsu, on the other hand, agreed. "Well, what else are we gonna do? Just up and let them take down the building?"

"Of course not, dumbass!" Edo-Levy scolded. "The guild hall can move, and I'm getting ready to move it!"

The Earthland group was indeed surprised, but Naruto didn't think it mattered.

"And you're going at a snail's pace. I'll go slow down whoevers outside and get a feel for how mages fight here at the same time. I should be fine." The whiskered blonde announced.

"Tch." Edo-Levy spat. "It's your funeral, blondie. I sure as hell ain't waitin' for you once we're ready to go."

Naruto nodded and leapt through a window to the outside.

"Is that guy crazy?!" Gazille yelled in disbelief. "Did he forget that we can't use magic here?!"

"If that guy really CAN buy us sometime, try and get us to a secure location. If you rush it, we'll just end up jumping somewhere random." Edo-Gray asked the resident mechanic.

Edo-Levy just grunted in affirmation. "And if a single person walks through that door we jump immediately, no matter where we might end up."

**XxBreakxX**

Naruto stood in front of the small regiment of lance wielding soldiers. A few in back were using the traditional catapult method to batter the guild hall.

"Are you here to surrender?" The man in front of the unit asked.

The blonde shinobi laughed. "Afraid not. Name's Naruto, and I'm here to kick your ass."

"You heard him, attack!"

Naruto just grinned as the troops charged. He was going to have some fun.

**XxBreakxX**

High above the sky, two purple wyverns flew at quick speeds. Atop each one was a single figure.

"Mm… Do you think they're done already?" A man on one wyvern asked.

**(AN: Good lord don't make me describe Sugarboy)**

"I doubt it. They're all pathetic." A woman on the second beast responded.

**(You know what; I'll seriously assume you've read Fairy Tail before. I'll only describe character's who's outfits have been changed.).**

"Then why did you send them ahead of us? You know we have better results if we're part of the preliminary attack." Sugarboy pointed out.

Knightwalker just chuckled. "I'm aware. I grow tired of my current regiment. Perhaps they'll be discharged so I can get some new men."

"So cruel, Madam." The eccentric man said sarcastically.

"Huh? What's that?!" Knightwalker all of a sudden exclaimed.

As they grew closer towards the guild, what they saw astounded them. All of their men were spread across the clearing. Trees had been downed, and every catapult was in pieces. At the center of all the carnage stood one boy. He looked up and gave them a smirk.

"Reinforcements, eh? Bring it!" Naruto yelled before leaping high into the air.

Forming a standard Rasengan, he prepared to drive it straight into Knightwalker's legion, but stopped right in his tracks.

"Erza-chan?" He questioned, before being batted back to the ground by Knightwalker's spear.

He flew fast and hard, breaking through a few trees and dragging up a good amount of dirt below him.

"Ah, damn!" He cursed, surprised at how hard he was hit.

Meanwhile, the assailant and her partner were equally surprised, but for a different reason.

"That was a close one, Madam. If he hadn't hesitated you'd be nosediving right now." Sugarboy pointed out.

"Peh." She spat, clearly not amused. "Like that would have beaten me. Still, I'm curious as to how he took down my men like that. I could understand if Fairy Tail came out of their hole and took them down, but one child?" The redhead wondered.

"_He also seemed to know me… What was with that endearing suffix?"_

Her partner in crime hummed. "I don't recognize him, either. Quite vexing indeed."

"It matters not. I"ll be taking care of him here. Just give me a—"

"That won't be necessary." A female voice announced.

Both Knightwalker and Sugarboy froze at the voice, almost reluctant to turn and face the woman.

The armored man cleared his throat. He was always somewhat intimidated whenever he saw the brown haired woman's broadsword. "To what do we owe the pleasure, Mei-sama?"

Mei gave him a flat look. "Spare me the pleasantries, Sugar. You've both been recalled. The king is quite disappointed with your work as of late, Erza."

"So he called in the Shadow Squad?!" Knightwalker growled.

"No, just me." The assassin responded. "And I'm here to merely capture whom I can. Destruction not necessary."

Knightwalker looked ready to attack the woman, barely restraining her fury. It was only when Sugarboy grabbed he legion's reign and pulled that she snapped out of her rage.

"Let her be, Madam. You wanted your squad gone anyways, correct?" The man said sternly.

"Fine." She spat. "Let's get out of here.

Once they were out of sight, Mei grinned. "I suppose I'll give our mystery man a visit." She said before jumping off her legion, regardless of the height.

**XxBreakxX**

Currently, many Edo-Fairy Tail members were staring out the window in awe. They were currently taking in the sight off the fallen soldiers, but Naruto himself was nowhere to be seen.

"He really took them all out?!" Edo-Gray exclaimed.

"And I didn't even see much magic, just martial arts!" Lucy joined, equally surprised.

Gazille whistled. "I guess he wasn't kidding when he said not to worry about a lack of magic."

Natsu and Happy, meanwhile, had stars in their eyes. "I wanna fight him!" The Fire Dragon Slayer exclaimed.

"Ano… Didn't he beat Gildarts-san?" Wendy questioned nervously.

The battle junky just nodded. "Yeah! So if I beat him, it's like I beat Gildarts too!"

"Well, idiots aside…" Edo-Wendy started. "Levy! The blonde kid did it. We don't need to move."

"Are you shitting me?!" Edo-Levy screamed. "I was ready to start the countdown! What a waste of time and work…"

"_DEFINITELY different…" _Gazille thought with a sweatdrop.

"Well, where is the buffoon?" Charle asked, obviously getting impatient. "He should be back by now, right?"

Natsu nodded. "Yeah, he sure LOOKED done."

"Fine, I'll go fetch him." Edo-Wendy offered.

Natsu was about to argue, but Happy stopped him. "We can't use magic, remember? Just let her go in case of a fight."

Regardless of what he thought, Edo-Wendy was already out the door, leaving everybody else to just wait.

**XxBreakxX**

Naruto had finally exited his crater in the ground and began to dust himself off. "I could've sworn that was Erza-chan. That woman sure hit like her." He said, moving on to stretching out the kinks in his joints.

"_Edolas is a parallel world to this one. They act as two sides to the same coin. Because of this, even the existence of people is mirrored."_

Mystogan's word rang out inside the shinobi's head.

"So that was the Edolas version of Erza-chan, then? The hair WAS different…"

"So you're from Earthland, then?" Mei voice spoke out of nowhere. "Very curious. I'd assumed you'd be Lacrima with the rest of them."

Naruto was a bit startled by her sudden appearance—as well as her figure—but regained composure quickly enough. "And who are you?"

"Ah, how rude of me. You may call me Mei. Terumi Mei."

The blonde kept a critical eye on her, not ready to let down his guard just yet. "Are you with the kingdom, then?"

"Indeed." She revealed, hefting the broadsword off her back. It had dozens of small holes covering it, and the handle wrapped around her entire hand, almost like a shell. Slowly, magma began to ooze out of the holes, dripping to the ground. It didn't take long for the whole sword to look like one big mass of concentrated lava.

"It always disappointed me when I have to melt the cute ones…" She said before licking her lips sadistically. The whole thing had prompted Naruto to draw a kunai and enter a stance.

Mei charged.

**XxChapter EndxX**

**SO, I HAD SAID THAT I WOULD AVERAGE ABOUT 10,000 WORDS A CHAPTER. MY PLAN WAS TO WRITE 1,000 WORDS A DAY AND RELEASE ON THE TENTH DAY.**

**INSTEAD, I'LL WRITE 1,000 WORDS A DAY, AND RELEASE WHENEVER I FEEL THE CHAPTER SHOULD END. IT'S THE SAME AMOUNT OF CONTENT IN THE SAME AMOUNT OF TIME, JUST A BIT MORE SPLIT UP.**

**IT'S NOT REALLY THAT DIFFERENT, AND IT'S EASIER ON ME AS A AUTHOR**

**XxThe "Gazille" FactorxX**

**People are continually contacting me or leaving reviews relating to the way I address Gazille. I felt it was about time for me to explain a few things.**

**Early on, when the Phantom Lord arc was just starting, translators gave every character a preliminary name. Juvia was Lluvia, Jellal was Gerard, and Gajeel was Gazille. **

**For a while, things didn't change, but eventually the translators agreed on a general way to write their names. I jumped on the Juvia bandwagon almost instantly, but "Jellal" and "Gajeel" didn't appeal to me. For the longest time, I wouldn't address them any other way. After being exposed to the entomology of Jellal's name (Arabic for "He Who Conquers), I acquiesced, as Fernandes was a reference to the man who traveled the world. The two names went together, and Jellal became the obviously correct translation. It took me a while, but I decided to go with it.**

**But to this day, I absolutely hate the way "Gajeel" sounds. I can't even say it. The "J" is just so awkward!**

**Old habits die hard, and this one isn't changing anytime soon. Sorry. i**


	12. The Mistress of Magma

**XxChapter 12: The Mistress of MagmaxX**

"I'm flattered that you think I'm cute, but I'm not planning on melting anytime soon." Naruto said while slipping into his Kawazu Kumite stance.

"_Kawazu Kumite isn't as effective without __Sage Mode__, but the basics of the style should help me around that sword. I don't want to be cut by that, Kyubi or not…"_

Mei chuckled, but didn't stop her charge. With a heavy movement, her massive blade hit the ground where Naruto was, creating a large crater and sending a copious splash of lava through the air. Noticing that she didn't hit anything, she opened her senses and swung laterally to the left. Accurately locating his position, the shinobi was forced to perform a hasty backflip to avoid the slash. Regardless of his acrobatics, bits of lava flew from the blade's tip and splattered across his jumpsuit.

"Agh…" He moaned in pain, the fatal substance burning into his chest and face. They were just droplets, so it was nowhere near fatal, but the pain was still excruciating. Not intent to let down his guard though, he quickly tossed a few shuriken at Mei, who merely guarded with the flat of her blade.

"You're quick, I'll give you that, but you'll need more than weird martial arts stances and toys like these." She said, eying the shuriken on the ground.

"It's called getting a feel, lady." The blonde said flatly, not rising to her provocation.

Mei reared her blade back, parallel to the ground. "Yotoryu: Maguma Weibu! (Lava Sword Style: Magma Wave)" She yelled, heaving the blade forward and sending a tall, thin slash of lava at Naruto.

He hastily cartwheeled out of the way, but it was a close one. The thin blade of burning hot sludge tore through the ground, melting the very earth and leaving a crag. Naruto whistled at the carnage, admittedly impressed. Not intent to just remain a target, the Jinchuriki formed his signature hand seal.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! (Shadow Clone)" He called, summoning five clones to his aid.

Mei was speechless. "What kind of magic is that?! I've never heard of such a thing! Where is your tool?!"

"_We have to use items to draw in the Eternano for us, so all magic in Edolas is done through weapons, such as my staffs."_ Mystogan's words rang in the boy's head.

"Oh, that's right! You guy's need items to use magic. Yeah, Earthland mages don't need that, but I'm not a mage anyways, so whatever."

Internally, Mei was scared at the revelation. _"If that's true, than Earthland mages could have a far broader range of magic, and aren't affected by Edolas' magic shortage…"_

"Charge!" Naruto suddenly yelled.

"OSU!" His clones responded, dashing into action.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Mei started to dance around the taijutsu onslaught. There was no jutsu involved, but that was rarely the case with Naruto's clones. They would bombard the enemy with physical attacks while a separate clone helped Naruto with a Rasengan (Spiral Sphere). He was learning how to do it with one hand, but he was nowhere near as skilled with the technique as Jiraiya was. That man could make a Cho Odama Rasengan (Super Big Ball Rasengan) with one hand. Naruto could only make a standard one with a single hand, as demonstrated with his attack on Knightwalker earlier. The fact that Naruto was making a distraction meant one thing.

Odama Rasengan time.

Mei noticed a sixth clone appear next to Naruto's real body and began forming a large ball of energy with him. Remembering the attack on Knightwalker, she figured one ten times bigger was bad news. Ducking under a roundhouse from one of the clones, the brown haired beauty cut him right through the waist, dispelling him immediately. While she was crouched, two of the remaining clones through kunai at her back. Without even looking, Mei sprang into the air and twirled to face her assailants.

"Yotoryu: Maguma Reinu! (Lava Sword Style: Magma Rain)"

Mei flung her blade vertically across the air, sending senbon sized needles of lava. The two clones could do nothing about the sheer volume of projectiles, and screamed as the attack burned straight through their bodies in multiple areas, ending them as well. The lava that missed burnt straight through the ground, creating countless deep holes in the ground. The last two clones jumped into the air at the woman's suspended form, drawing kunai and going for a slash.

Showing surprising mobility for being in the air, Mei continued her spin from the last attack and spun in for a second slash. Much to her surprise, the clones worked together to block her massive sword with just their kunai.

"How did you—!"

One of the clones grinned. "It's called Hien. (Flying Swallow)" He said smugly, gesturing to the extended chakra that lengthened the kunai's range and defensive power. By then, the real Naruto had jumped into the air behind her and attempted to strike with his completed attack.

"Odama Rasengan!"

The large mass of chakra ground itself into her back and pushed her right through the two clones in front of her. The ball expanded further and encased her completely before sending her he clearing, careening to the ground. Hard.

The explosion once he eventually collided with the earth created a massive explosion that sent dust everywhere and broke multiple trees. Dispelling the last clones, Naruto landed in front of the crater he had created.

"Sorry about that lady, but I need to get moving." He said before turning around to move towards the guild. He got no more than three feet before a voice yelled out.

"Look out!"

Turning around, Naruto was more than surprised to see Edo-Wendy blade locked with a heavily damaged Mei. Edo-Wendy had two bladed tonfa, and had crossed her arms in an X shape to block.

Mei, meanwhile, was seething. "How dare you?! Insolent child!" She screamed, summoning more lava to pour out her sword. Edo-Wendy began losing ground, and was narrowly saved when Naruto shunshin'd behind Mei and kicked her in the side of the face to send her flying.

Mei was enraged even further, not used to that kind of punishment. "Argh! I'm not done with you, boy!"

"Tenken: Kazeryu! (Heaven's Blade: Wind Dragon)"

A medium sized dragon made of wind blades barreled through Mei, cutting through her and finally rendering her unconscious. Across the clearing, Edo-Wendy stood with both her tonfa spinning at blurring speeds, kicking up wind around her. Slowly, the speed died down, and she lowered her weapons.

Naruto trotted over to her with a grin stretched across his face. "You use Futon Jutsu as well?!" he asked excitedly.

Edo-Wendy slowly nodded, not comfortable with his closeness and enthusiasm.

"That's awesome! Thanks for coming to help me; I'd be puddle without you." The blonde thanked.

"You should feel lucky. People were wondering where you were, and I was the only one who volunteered to go and fetch you. I see now that it was necessary for more than one reason." The bluenette explained.

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry about that." He said before looking at Mei's down and bleeding form. "Do you know who she is?"

Edo-Wendy nodded. "That's Yoto no Mei (Mei of the Lava Sword), a member of the kingdom's elite assassination unit. The Shadow Squad. I'm surprised you were able to beat her, 'cuz if she went for the guild house and you weren't here, we'd be doomed." She revealed.

"Shadow… Squad...?"

"Yeah, they're really tough. They've been around since the kingdom's conception. The only remaining member from the original squad is Ryotenbin no Onoki (Onoki the Fence Sitter). The newest member is Sabaku no Gaara (Gaara of the Desert)."

Naruto froze stock still at that. "Did you say Gaara?!" He all but screamed, grabbing the Edolas resident by the shoulders.

"Don't touch me!" She yelled, retaliating by kicking him in the shin.

The shinobi hopped back comically on one foot while holding his injured shin. "Sorry, I got over excited. Mystogan was right; I know an alternate version of Gaara."

Edo-Wendy dusted off her shoulders and raised an eyebrow at the revelation. "You personally know the Earthland version of Gaara?"

"Yeah, sort of. He's a good guy though, so I'm not sure I'd be able to fight this guy face to face…"

Before the conversation could continue, countless reinforcements stormed out of the woods.

"Mei-sama!" One of the guards yelled.

"Place them under arrest, now!"

"SIR!"

Edo-Wendy grabbed Naruto's wrist. "We go. Now." She ordered before started to run, leading the boy through the woods with practiced ease. She knew her way around the area despite how redundant it looked. They'd lose the soldiers in all but a few minutes with her guidance.

**XxBreakxX**

Back at the guild hall, the tense silence was broken by Edo-Wendy bursting through the door, dragging a disoriented Naruto behind her.

"LEVY!"

"HELL YEAH!" Edo-Levy responded from her station, pulling down a large lever.

The guards outside could do nothing as the guild just disappeared right before their eyes. Fairy Tail had eluded them again.

**XxBreakxX**

"Say that again?" Faust ordered coldly, holding a quite intimidating tone.

Coco was shivering as she was forced to repeat her report. "Madam Knightwalker and Sir Sugarboy's regiments were both annihilated during the raid. Mei-sama provided backup, but was defeated as well. By the time HER regiment had showed up, she was down. The soldiers weren't quick enough to catch her opponents, and Fairy Tail moved their guild hall again, escaping."

Faust looked like he was going to pop a blood vessel. The angry vain bulging across his forehead was quite the sight. Taking a deep breath, the overexcited king rubbed his temples. "What's Mei's condition?" He asked, finally regaining composure.

"Sir, she's in critical but stable condition. She was covered from head to toe in lacerations varying in size and depth. The main issue was blood loss, but she should heal in due time. It was a close one."

"How did this happen?!" He said exhaustedly. He wasn't screaming anymore, but he was just overly stressed at the entire situation. "Fairy Tail usually runs at the first sight of Erza! What made them stay to fight? And how did they even win! I sent Mei!"

Clanking boots signified the entrance of two new people, being Sugarboy and Knightwalker. "I might be able to answer that." Knightwalker revealed.

"Erza… Sugarboy… I suppose you WOULD know what happened. Report."

Knightwalker saluted. "Sir, we sent our regiments in ahead of us with artillery support. Once Sugarboy and I arrived on our legions, we had noticed a single boy had defeated all of our troops and destroyed the catapults. He attempted to take me down, but I managed to counterattack. Before I could pursue, Mei ordered me to head back to the castle, and said she'd handle the boy herself."

Fuast nodded and turned his attention to Sugarboy. "One boy… Do you remember his appearance?"

"Mmmm. I didn't recognize him, but he had a very peculiar look. He had spiky blonde hair, and some strange orange and black jumpsuit. When he got close to Madam Knightwalker, I could swear I saw what looked like whisker marks on each of his cheeks. I believe his eyes were blue, as well."

With each feature described to Faust his facial features dropped further. By the end, he held an uncharacteristically dire face. "Coco!"

"Sir!" She saluted.

"Get word around as fast as possible. I need Hughes, Byro, Lily, and the entire Shadow Squad in the council room for an immediate meeting."

Everybody in the room gained a shocked look.

"Sir, you know the boy, then?" Knightwalker asked.

The old king nodded grimly. "I believe so. I'd thought him dead, but if he truly DOES live… We could very well see the end of our kingdom."

"He's that powerful?" Sugarboy asked disbelievingly.

"He led the very first incarnation of the Akatsuki…" Faust revealed, shocking the room even further, if possible. "Him and eight other individuals wrought havoc as the world's most powerful mercenary group. Eventually, they were hired by a rebel group to aid a border city to take over the kingdom. After Akatsuki attacked, we had barely won. I had to use Dorma Anima to defeat the leader, Namikaze Naruto. My personal council believes that its overuse during that battle has attributed to our magic shortage."

Everybody just stood stock still at the information they had just received. NO wonder the boy had beaten Mei. That meeting definitely needed to happen, for sure…

**XxBreakxX**

"So… Where are we now?" Wendy asked curiously.

Edo-Lucy shrugged her shoulders. "Levy! Where'd you take us?" She asked.

"We're in the desert. VERY far away from our last area. You guys wanted me to actually chose a location since we had a bunch of time, so here we are."

The Earthland group (plus shinobi) paled at the information.

"That's… Bad." Gazille said exasperatingly.

Naruto nodded in agreement. "We need to get to the capital and save our friends. If we don't get there soon enough, we might miss that Mystogan guy, and you people won't be able to use your magic to break them out of those crystal things."

"I've been meaning to ask about that…" Natsu started, giving the shinobi a narrow eyed look. "How can you still use magic when we can't?"

Naruto laughed, but also rejoiced. It was finally time to explain to these people what chakra was. "That's because I don't use magic!" He revealed.

Everybody was quite shocked to hear that, but Naruto decided to continue before they could question him. "Everybody you all met in Konoha uses something called chakra. I'll spare you the details, but know that it's produced by our bodies directly. While mages take in magic from the outside, we produce chakra from the inside. We can use our techniques despite that lack of that eter-stuff."

"So that's why everything was so different… That guy I fought, he called himself Neji. Besides that thing with his eyes, I couldn't really tell that he was using any magic at all, yet he was hurting me in ways his bare hands couldn't. It didn't even matter that I had iron skin!" Gazille complained.

"That's his ability. The eyes enable him to see your internal organs and flow of energy, and he then goes for them with his taijutsu style. He'll shoot thin needles of chakra out of his fingers and hit your organs as he sees them. It' a really ugly style and not one you want to fight."

Everybody seemed to agree; that didn't sound very fun. Explanations over, Natsu deemed it important to then ask how to get going. "We need to get out of here. Can any of you escort us?"

Sadly, all they got was silence. Everybody in Edo-Fairy Tail LOOKED like they wanted to help, but just didn't seem up to it. They weren't ready to die, which also meant that they didn't trust the Earthland group to succeed.

"Well, that's alright. If you guys aren't comfortable, that's that, I guess." Naruto said with a kind grin. "Just give us a direction and we'll go as the crow flies. That should be good enough, I guess."

Just as Lucy was about to give him what he wanted, somebody in Edo-Fairy Tail actually decided to speak up. "I'll go!" The voice said hastily.

Everybody look and saw Edo-Wendy with her hand in the air, looking at Naruto. "Um… I'll take you guys if you want…" She said in an uncharacteristically meek manner, quite reminiscent of her Earthland counterpart.

Edo-Fairy Tail was speechless, obviously not expecting the woman to actually agree to help them all get to the capital. She was woman of logic, acting on information and only doing so when she was confident in her ability to succeed. It was a given that her guild mates would be surprised taking those facts into account.

"I saw Naruto-san beat Terumi Mei. I trust him to fight hard, and because of that I'll help him. I would only take three days if we left today, so…"

"He beat HER of all people?!" Edo-Lucy exclaimed.

The blonde in question walked over and patted the bluenette on the back. "Yeah, but I couldn't have done it without her help. I almost got melted for the Sage's sake!" He praised, hand moving to ruffle her hair. Nobody noticed the small blush on Edo-Wendy's face as it happened.

"If you're sure…" Edo-Gray said, deciding that he trusted Edo-Wendy far more than any of their otherworldly visitors. The rest of guild seemed to follow a similar train of thought, and after some food and an okay from Edo-Mira, the group was out the door and trudging through the desert.

**XxBreakxX**

"We need to make a move, and soon." A very deep voice said. The location was a dark cave with assorted chairs, tables, cabinets, cots, and a bar (imagine the Ragged Flagon from Skyrim).

"You think they'll retaliate, Nagato?" A mature, female voice responded.

Nagato, a deep red haired man wearing the patented Akatsuki cloak nodded to the question. "Hidan went… overboard, to say the least. The fact that Deidara agreed to deliver the heads makes it even worse. I expect full regiments, captains, and maybe even a Shadow Squad member. Konan, I think it may be time to strike, and strike hard."

Konan, a blue haired woman with a paper flower in her hair, slightly gasped. "You intend all-out war?!"

"Why not, hn?"

"Deidara is right, despite his fault in the matter." Nagato said, gesturing his head to the mop of blonde hair that was Deidara.

Deidara just laughed, not at all ashamed of what he'd done. "I'd been itching to do that forever! If I was really sadistic, I'd just ask danna to string them up in the main square!"

"Like I would do that." A young voice scolded. He was as young as he sounded, and had short, messy red hair. "My string is very valuable, I wouldn't waste it on scaring a bunch of politicians."

"And Sasori's right as well. Gather the rest of the members. It's time we did some information gathering, first. If we go tomorrow, we should make it within two days."

Faust was in for a surprise, in more ways than one…

**XxChapter EndxX**

**HM… 3000 WORDS EVERY FEW DAYS FEELS GOOD TO ME. I LIKE IT. IF IT BOTHERS YOU, WHATEVER. **

**AT THIS POINT, I'D LIKE TO START A POLL, RELATING TO COMBAT MATCHUPS BETWEEN THE AKATSUKI AND THE SHADOW SQUAD. REQUEST WHO YOU'D LIKE TO SEE FIGHT WHO, AND I'LL WRITE UP THE POLL IN TWO CHAPTERS. **

**XENO OUT, PEACE.**


	13. Author's Note

**Hello readers, this is your very own XenotheWise135. I'm writing and posting this author's note to both apologize and update my readers as to what I'm currently doing. What was a steady schedule has come to a complete halt, and there are numerous reasons for such an occurrence. **

**I've been no-lifeing Fire Emblem: Awakening to and unhealthy extent (I have my 3DS on my lap right now. I'll be playing right after I post this.), and I recently obtained Ultimate Ninja Storm 3, another game of great entertainment for me.**

**Beyond these things though, which admittedly take up a great deal of my unemployed life, I've also just been lazily stagnant. I haven't even STARTED the next chapter (which will be dealing with the Kingdom's views on how to deal with Fairy Tail and Akatsuki, as well as the debut of the rest of the Shadow Squad), but I know how I want it to go. **

**Basically, I'd like you all to just give me some time. I'll shoot for having the next chapter out on April 1****st**** (and no, it won't be a parody or anything, I just want to post at the start of the month), and will MOST DEFINITELY resume my 3000 words every few days schedule.**

**While I set that date, it's only how long I'd like you to bear with me. If I feel the urge, or slap myself until I just DO IT, you'll see it sooner. I'm just letting you guys know that despite this being an adopted story, I'm quite serious about continuing it and maintaining quality. If you've read my Fairy Tail x Negima crossover, you'll notice that my fight scenes are my specialty. I'll be using my combat oriented mind to bring you longer, more complex fights, not like chapter nine, where fights wrapped up pretty quickly.**

**I know what I'm doing people, I just want some time. **

**Xeno out, Peace.**


	14. The Pieces are Set (interlude)

***Ahem*… ORDER UP!**

**XxChapter 13: The Pieces are SetxX**

Everybody Faust had requested the day before sat at an extremely large, round council table. The Shadow Squad sat in a row, all looking as they did in Konoha, except for Mei. The alter-ego of the Mizukage was covered in multiple bandages and had quite a few visible bruises. The rage coming off of her was almost tangible, as well. She was obviously quite sore about her last lost, in more ways than one.

"Most of you are probably wondering why I called you here…" Faust began, slowly eying all of his attendees. "Although I'm quite certain Mei here already knows our coming topic of interest."

A deep chuckle echoed throughout the room. "I was wondering what had happened to you, Mei." Onoki mocked. "I always knew you were the weakest of us, but to end up like this—"

He was quickly cut off by a thin needle heading straight for his face. Without any effort at all, Onoki simply tilted his head out of the way while the needle deposited itself in the wall behind him, slowly leaking lava.

"This is off to a great start." Lily said exasperatingly, burying his forehead into his palms.

Hughes, on the other hand, loved it. "These guys are always super fun to watch!"

Then, a terrifyingly disgusting laughter showed itself, the source being none other than the tiny Byro. "I doubt you would feel the same on the opposing end of their wrath, boy."

"Mm. Such a disgusting laugh." Sugarboy commented offhandedly.

Knightwalker, finally having had enough, slammed her fist onto the table. "Can we get on with this? I actually have things to do in this army, you know."

Faust cleared his throat. "Quite. Now then, only Onoki and Tsunade would remember this, but I've already loosely explained things to a few of you. Erza and Sugarboy claim to have encountered a man resembling Namikaze Naruto, and Mei even says to have fought the child."

Tsunade's eyes widened considerably. "He lives?!" She exclaimed. "I thought you had killed the boy yourself!"

"Indeed, I saw the body myself." Onoki added. "He truly lives still?"

Faust nodded grimly. "It would appear so. But few things add up."

"And what would those be?" Ei's gravel-like voice sounded out.

"He's still a child, for one. According to the description they gave me, he hasn't aged a day." Faust revealed. "Additionally, he didn't use any tools for magic, according to Mei. He used magic without his patented 'Hiraishin' kunai. In fact, he fought nothing like the Namikaze we knew at all." He further explained.

"And there's another point to bring to attention as well." Mei's low, annoyed voice spoke, gaining everybody's attention immediately. "He brought up Earthland when explaining his magic. I have reason to believe he hails from said place."

Wide eyes adorned the room. That could mean only one thing.

"He's headed for the lacrima, then?" Lily concluded. "Presumably with Fairy Tail on his side?"

"Which leads us to the purpose of this meeting: how to deal with a possible attack on this capital?" The king asked.

Ei slammed his fist onto the table. "I move to be deployed immediately, along with the rest of my regiment. If Fairy Tail arrives, I WILL be waiting."

"Yes, but we can't mobilize too many troops. The civilians will get antsy, and there might be some overcrowding issues." Onoki argued.

"Then we spread our forces out. There are plenty of border colonies around Edolas that lay between us and Fairy Tail. We may not need to fight in the capital at all." Tsunade suggested.

Mei spat angrily. "I could care less about any of this. I just want to KILL. THAT. BOY!" She yelled.

Gaara finally decided to speak up. "Silence. It's unbecoming, not to mention annoying."

Everybody was quite surprised at the reminder the teen was even in the room. He had merely ben watching in disinterest for a while now.

"Besides. You all seem to forget one, large, additional factor. The Akatsuki."

And THAT is what silenced the room for the longest period yet…

**XxBreakxX**

Most of Akatsuki sat in a circle around a campfire, obviously in deep discussion.

"So we're really doing this?" Edo-Konan asked.

A small huff was heard to her left, belonging to none other than Edo-Itachi. "It's a bit too late to make such an argument; don't you think so, Konan?"

"Itachi is right." Edo-Nagato agreed. "Hidan may have pushed this plan forward, but it was an inevitability long before such an act."

"HA! If I'd known killing those guys like that would've pushed forward a war like this, it would have happened A LOT sooner!" Edo-Hidan howled.

The leader of Akatsuki just sighed at the man's attitude. He was a strong fighter and a valuable ally for certain, but he was still a bit… off, in terms of mental stability compared to the rest of the group.

"You should have just let me kill them with my art, hm! It would have been so much more beautiful to see their eyes at the moment of their deaths! To see them cower in fear before exploding into a shower of PURE ART!"

…Scratch that, Hidan fitted in just fine.

"Shut up, Deidara. Hidan as well. Don't make me kill you." Edo-Kakuzu scolded.

"FEH!" The immortal (?) spat. "Like you could. But you know that better than anyone else, eh, Kakuzu?"

A sick cackle was heard suddenly, soon revealed to be one of Edo-Kisames making. "Truly, must you all act like such children?" The shark-faced man asked sarcastically.

"Ano sa! Ano sa!" An annoyingly excited and childlike voice yelled. "Where's Zetsu-sempai at?"

Edo-Nagato rubbed his temples in frustration almost immediately. "He's gathering intel, Tobi. We went over this before we left this morning. We're to set up camp and wait while Zetsu checks out the next border checkpoint."

"Oh… Yeah, Tobi knew that, he was just making sure Leader-sama remembered!" Edo-Tobi exclaimed.

"I still don't know why you don't let me just kill him and get him out of our hair…" Edo-Sasori whispered into Edo-Nagato's ear.

"You know very well why." The red head responded in the same tone. "His skills are… unique, to say the least. He's the last one in this group I want against us."

His fellow red head grunted in affirmation. He knew quite well how a mutiny from Edo-Tobi would go. The fact that the man had any political views at all was surprising considering how he acted. But he wouldn't be a member of Akatsuki otherwise. The man, however eccentric, wanted the kingdom gone just as much as the rest of them.

"I don't believe it'll be as easy as it sounds, though. Do you honestly believe we can just waltz in and clean up at our leisure? At least one or more of us…" Itachi started, gaining everybody's attention.

"Will undoubtedly perish in battle. Of that I can be certain." He finished lowly, closing his eyes and exhaling.

The red-haired leader of Akatuski hesitated only but a moment, before answering with undeniable certainty. "If you fear such an outcome, then you shouldn't be here." Edo-Nagato said.

Edo-Itachi merely smiled at the response. "I never said I did. I was merely making sure we all knew what we were getting into." He paused to look at the rest of the group, all with a fiery look in their eyes (minus Edo-Tobi). "I see now that my concerns were unfounded. I believe we are ready for this."

"With that, I can assume we're ready to go over our plans." Edo-Nagato started. We'll go in order of your rings. Tell me your jobs."

Edo-Sasori started, having worn the left thumb ring. "I will assist in combat as necessary on our path to the capital. Once we reach it though, I will break off from the group to encase all entry points to the city in string traps. Nobody will be getting in OR out after our arrival."

Edo-Hidan spoke next, having the left index finger ring. "Heh, my job's the best. I kill. On the way there, when we're there, doesn't matter. Nagato says enemy, I stab."

Edo-Kakuzu, holder of the left middle finger ring was next. "I'll be working in tandem with Hidan to bring down the bulk of the enemy army. When the opportunity presents itself, or I'm forced to do so, I'll break off from our pair and engage any high profile targets. If a captain shows, Hidan will stay in place while I handle the larger threat."

Edo-Kisame wore the one on the left ring finger, and thus went next. "I won't be entering the city in the first place. There's a large military harbor on the western side, and I'll be turning their boats upside down. No naval combat or transportation will be happening on my watch.

Edo-Tobi was next in line with the left pinkie finger ring. "Tobi will be using his… talents to break Yahiko-sempai out of prison! After that, well… Should I fight or something? I could do that too." Getting a small nod from Edo-Nagato, Edo-Tobi gave a thumbs up. "OK! Save Yahiko-sempai, kill bad guys. Not necessarily in that order, but whatever!"

The ring for the right pinkie finger was held by Edo-Zetsu, currently not present. "I speak for Zetsu on this one, since his orders come from me specifically. Zetsu will do detailed scouting runs at every checkpoint on the way to the city. Once there, he'll split into two and have one come in contact with me while the other pinpoints the locations of the Shadow Squad and relays it to me." Edo-Nagato explained.

"I believe that's where I come in." Edo-Itachi said, holding the right ring finger one. "I'll stay on standby until Zetsu gives Nagato intel on the Shadow Squad's location. I'll be handling Gaara if things go well, otherwise Tsunade will be my target."

Edo-Konan, with the right middle finger ring, spoke next. "I'll be on that duty as well. Preferably Onoki or Mei should come into contact with me."

Edo-Deidara held the right index finger ring, and was next. "I'll be taking down some of the more… important buildings in the city. The knight barracks and the castle are high priority. My explosives should do the job, hn. I'll be on standby for a Shadow Squad member if things get messy though."

And Edo-Nagato was last, holding the right thumb ring. "I'll be going straight for the leader of the Shadow Squad. Ei needs to go down, and fast. Once everybody's jobs are complete, we should convene on the castle. Or at least its ruins if things go as planned. I have no doubt Faust will pull out Dorma Anima if things get that far. Naruto couldn't beat it alone, and I doubt any of us could. We take it together." He said before pausing.

"Any questions?"

There were none. Akatsuki was ready.

**XxBreakxX**

"Are we there yet?" Natsu's annoyed voice complained.

Edo-Wendy huffed. They were currently trotting through the desert at a steady pace, but Natsu seemed less than pleased at how long things were taking. "No. Now do you guys even have any idea what you'll be doing when you get there? And don't you dare ask me to fight anybody. I'm just dropping you guys off and running."

Naruto put a hand to his chin and hummed. "Well, I'm at full combat strength, so if one of those Shadow Squad dudes or a captain comes at me, I can take 'em. But I suppose looking for that lacrima stuff is more important. I'll make some clones and have them transform to do some information gathering. You know, ninja stuff."

Gazille just laughed dryly, not a hint of humor present. "Yeah, that's about all we CAN do. Until Mystogan shows up with those magic pill things, none of us but blondie will be able to fight. We're fucking useless. We just keep low, and have our eyes and ears open."

"I agree. There's not much more to be done until we're combat ready." Wendy agreed.

"Are we there yet?" The Fire Dragon Slayer intoned once more.

"No." Edo-Wendy replied immediately. "So you guys can't use that chakra stuff like Naruto? Sucks for you. I don't see why you didn't wait for that one dude who can apparently fix it to come on by. You're walking into a beehive without a suit on." She pointed out.

The blonde shinobi decided to fill her in. "Yeah, people on Earthland don't use chakra like I do, but that's not really important. We're pressed for time, majorly. Even if we're not combat ready, knowing where everybody is as soon as possible is the best possible move for us at this point. And besides, Mystogan is heading directly to the capital with the pills. You think he would know that we would ignore our earlier plan, then hunt down where the guild moved to, and still have enough time to save our friends? Hell no. We play with the cards we've got."

"Blondie's right." The Iron Dragon Slayer agreed. "We may not be able to do much, but it's better than nothing. Knowledge is power, right? Or some shit like that, I don't know. Sure beats waiting, I'll tell you that much."

"I think it's a good plan too." The Wind Dragon Slayer followed.

"Are we there yet?"

"NO!"

**XxChapter EndxX**

**Sorry for the wait guys. A whole bunch of shit coupled with my innate laziness caused this hiatus, but better late than never, right? This was a medium length filler chapter serving the sole purpose on building up excitement. Matchups are teased, combat scenarios are put into place, and things should be wild once all parties finally meet, some obviously not expecting the other!**

**The next chapter will come in a week or so, and I guarantee the first Akatsuki fight scene then, hopefully up to par with my standards. See you soon!**

**Xeno out, peace.**


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